Department for Transport

East Anglia Railway Line

James Cartlidge: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with bidders for the current East Anglian rail franchise about the closure of the Sudbury to Marks Tey railway line and other branch lines in Suffolk in November 2015 as a result of leaf damage to diesel rolling stock.

James Cartlidge: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will take steps to amend the current East Anglian rail franchise tender to reflect the closure of the Sudbury to Marks Tey railway line and other branch lines in Suffolk in November 2015 as a result of leaf damage to diesel rolling stock.

Claire Perry: No specific discussions with bidders have taken place in regard to leaf fall damage to diesel rolling stock. As a minimum, we expect bidders to deliver on the ambitious performance benchmarks we have set, and to minimise delay and disruption for passengers across the franchise.The East Anglia Invitation to Tender issued in September sets out that train performance will receive a weighting that is reflective of the level of improvements we want to see.

Island Railway Line

Jonathan Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the running costs of the Isle of Wight Island Line were in each category of expenditure in each of the last three years.

Jonathan Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much income from passengers was earned by the Isle of Wight Island Line in each of the last five years.

Claire Perry: We do not have the running costs of the Isle of Wight Island Line in each category of expenditure in each of the last three years. What we do have are the figures for 2014/15 as supplied by SSWT:Costs£mStaff costs2.093Station Lease costs1.298Depot Track Renewals, Maintenance, Materials0.66Track access and Electric Traction0.123Other0.443Total Costs4.617SSWT have informed us that the Island Line generated the following income in each of the last five years:2010/11 = £0.9m2011/12 = £1.0m2012/13 = £1.0m2013/14 = £0.9m2014/15 = £0.9m

Roads: Standards

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assistance his Department provides to local authorities and frontagers to (a) maintain un-adopted roads and (b) ensure safety and the public right of way on un-adopted roads.

Andrew Jones: The Department does not provide any assistance to local authorities and frontagers to maintain un-adopted roads, or to ensure safety and the public right of way on un-adopted roads.Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980 places a duty to maintain roads that are maintainable at public expense, namely adopted roads. However, where repairs are needed to remove danger to traffic in a private street, section 230 of the same Act gives the power to the street works authority to require the owners of the premises fronting the street to carry out specified repairs within a given time-scale

Cycling: Kingston upon Hull

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to paragraph 2.88 of the Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015, whether any of the additional funding for cycling infrastructure announced will be allocated to Hull.

Mr Robert Goodwill: In his Autumn Statement, the Chancellor announced more than £300m was being made available for cycling. The Government will set out its investment plans in the Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy, to be published summer 2016.

Cycling: Finance

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to paragraph 2.88 of the Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015, whether the additional funding for cycling infrastructure will raise UK cycling spending to the equivalent of £10 per capita.

Mr Robert Goodwill: In his Autumn Statement, the Chancellor announced more than £300m was being made available for cycling. The Government will set out its investment plans in the Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy, to be published summer 2016.

Manchester Airport

Ian C. Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what response his Department has made to requests for more rail travel paths from North Wales to Manchester Airport.

Andrew Jones: The allocation of train paths is a matter for the independent Office of Road and Rail to decide, not the Department for Transport.

Manchester Airport

Ian C. Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent representations he has received on rail paths from North Wales to Manchester Airport.

Andrew Jones: We are aware that Arriva Trains Wales (ATW), and other operators, are seeking to introduce additional services to Manchester Airport; however, capacity through central Manchester and at the Airport is limited. Infrastructure investment to deliver the Northern Hub (including the recently-opened fourth platform at the Airport) will improve the situation, but there are more aspirations for direct services to the Airport than even the post-Hub infrastructure will be able to accommodate.Please note that it is the Independent Office of Road and Rail which is responsible for the allocation of train paths and not the Department and it is therefore for the Office of Road and Rail to consider ATW’s application alongside other requests submitted for use of the limited available capacity for additional rail services to/from Manchester Airport.

Manchester Airport

Ian C. Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if his Department will estimate the number of passengers from North Wales and Cheshire who are projected to use Manchester Airport in (a) 2015, (b) 2020 and (c) 2025.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The last aviation forecasts made by the Department for Transport were produced in January 2013. These gave the following forecasts of passengers using Manchester Airport who began or ended their journeys in North Wales or Cheshire in the central demand case:(a) 2015 : 2.46 million(b) 2020 : 2.74 million(c) 2025 : 3.05 million

Manchester Airport

Ian C. Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate his Department has made of the number of passengers using Manchester Airport in (a) 2015, (b) 2020 and (c) 2025.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The last aviation forecasts made by the Department for Transport were produced in January 2013. These gave the following forecasts of passengers using Manchester Airport for the central demand case:(a) 2015 : 19.5 million(b) 2020 : 22.1 million(c) 2025 : 25.0 million

Manchester Airport

Ian C. Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if his Department will make a comparative assessment of rail links to (a) Cumbria and (b) North Wales from Manchester Airport.

Andrew Jones: We are aware that Arriva Trains Wales (ATW), and other operators, are seeking to operate additional services to Manchester Airport; however, capacity through central Manchester and at the Airport is limited, though infrastructure investment to deliver the Northern Hub (including the recently-opened fourth platform at the Airport) will improve this situation.Please note that it is the Independent Office of Road and Rail which is responsible for the allocation of train paths and not the Department, and it is therefore for the Office of Road and Rail to consider ATW’s application alongside other potential uses of the limited available capacity for additional rail services to/from Manchester Airport. Detailed information regarding these rail links is publicly available.

Railways: North of England

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the timetable is for the replacement of pacer trains that form part of the Northern franchise deal with Arriva Rail North Limited.

Andrew Jones: As we have stated, Pacers will be removed by the end of 2019. It is for the new operator to decide how and when (by that date) this occurs.

East Anglia Railway Line

James Cartlidge: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policy and guidance of the 13 day closure of the Sudbury to Marks Tey railway line in November 2015 as a result of leaf damage to diesel rolling stock; and if he will make a statement.

Claire Perry: The Department for Transport has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Department for Communities and Local Government

Local Government Finance

Seema Malhotra: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will publish his Department's analysis of the effects of proposed changes to business rates retention and the local government grant on the income of local authorities.

Mr Marcus Jones: The Government intends to move to 100% business rates retention in England by the end of this Parliament. We have confirmed that as part of the new system there will continue to be redistribution of local tax revenue between authorities and protections in place for authorities that see their business rates income fall significantly. Over the coming months we will be working with local government on the details of the scheme. Ahead of final decisions, it is too early to assess what the impact will be on local areas or authorities, but before the start of the financial year, local authorities in England estimated that the total business rates income for 2015-16 would be £23.1 billion.

Communities and Local Government: Festivals and Special Occasions

Mr Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, which Ministers of his Department attended events to celebrate Chanukah in (a) 2014 and (b) 2015.

Mr Marcus Jones: My hon. Friend, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, (Baroness Williams of Trafford) attended Chanukah reception at No. 10 in 2015. The former Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Communities andLocal Government, the former hon. Member for Bristol West (Stephen Williams) attended the Deputy Prime Minister’s Chanukah reception on 18 December 2014 at Admiralty House.

Enterprise Zones: Greater Manchester

Rebecca Long Bailey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, whether the Greater Manchester Life Science Enterprise Zone will cover the Salford and Eccles constituency.

James Wharton: Greater Manchester Local Enterprise Partnership’s successful bid for a Life Sciences Enterprise Zone covers two sites in central Manchester.Neither site is within Salford and Eccles.

Local Authorities

Mr Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what his policy is on creation of new unitary authorities.

Mr Marcus Jones: The Department for Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Social Rented Housing: Energy

Dr   Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps he plans to take to require social landlords to improve the energy efficiency of their housing stock.

Brandon Lewis: The Department for Communities and Local Government does not provide any specific guidance to private registered providers of social housing on energy efficiency of social housing stock. I would expect private registered providers to look at all opportunities for efficiencies.

Vacant Land: Planning Permission

Mr Douglas Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many planning refusals for greenfield sites have been overturned on appeal in each year between 2010 to 2015.

Brandon Lewis: This information is not held centrally by this Department.

Supported Housing

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what the average weekly rent and service charge for supported accommodation including (a) foyers, (b) direct access hostels, (c) supported housing for older people and (d) other supported housing has been in each (i) region and (ii) local authority area in the last three years.

Brandon Lewis: Average rents for supported housing are provided by private registered providers to the Homes and Communities Agency’s Statistical Data Return. This is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistical-data-return-statistical-releases

Kettering Borough Council: Information Services

Mr Philip Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will encourage the use of the customer services centre at Kettering Borough Council as an example of good practice for other local authorities to follow.

Mr Marcus Jones: The Government is keen to encourage all local authorities to look at how they work more effectively and efficiently with services providers and partner organisations in their area to ensure that their residents receive high quality and cost effective services.I am aware of the progress made by Kettering Borough Council in this area including the significant savings made and increased customer satisfaction and I am happy to encourage other authorities to look at its customer service centre as an example of good practice.

Social Rented Housing: Construction

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of trends in the number of homes built for social rent since 2010.

Brandon Lewis: Since 2010 we have delivered 270,000 affordable homes, including nearly 200,000 homes for rent.The majority of rented homes delivered through the Affordable Homes Programme are for Affordable Rent, delivering more homes for every pound of Government investment.The Spending Review committed £1.7 billion to deliver 100,000 affordable rented homes.

High Street Review

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the 12 Portas Pilots.

Mr Marcus Jones: I chair a refocused Future High Street Forum to lead an ambitious programme of town centre restructuring. The Forum runs the Great British High Streets Awards which champion innovation, sharing best practice around the country.Entries to this year’s competition have come from a number of the 27 former Portas pilots. One of these – Rotherham – won the accolade of best town centre. And I congratulate them.

House of Commons Commission

House of Commons: Food

Melanie Onn: To ask the hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington representing the House of Commons Commission, what proportion of unused and uneaten food produced or bought to be served on the parliamentary estate is (a) recycled, (b) sent to landfill and (c) donated to food aid providers.

Tom Brake: All catering food waste segregated at the kitchens and food preparation areas is recovered offsite by means of anaerobic digestion to produce methane fuel and fertiliser. No catering waste from Parliament is sent to landfill, and no uneaten food is donated to food aid providers.We are continuing to identify opportunities to reduce the amount of food waste and to increase the proportion we do generate that goes for recovery. A food waste audit to support this is due to take place later this month in the House of Commons.Food waste from prepared dishes in House of Commons catering outlets is 3% against sales. This is well below the national average for the catering industry of 5%; the Sustainable Restaurant Association has rated the House of Commons as a good practice organisation in respect of food waste.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

South China Sea

Stephen Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the Government has formed a view on the legality of the maritime claims made by the People's Republic of China in the South China Sea as set out in the nine-dotted line map annexed to the Notes Verbales communicated to the UN Secretary-General in May 2009.

Mr Hugo Swire: The UK takes no position on the underlying and conflicting claims in the South China Sea. We encourage all parties to resolve all their maritime disputes peacefully, in accordance with international law, for example the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

Cyprus

Craig Whittaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with the Greek and Turkish governments on the unification of Cyprus.

Mr David Lidington: The UK remains a strong supporter of a Cyprus settlement. We engage regularly with Greece and Turkey, at a range of levels, as part of our efforts to build support for the UN-led settlement talks. We look forward to continuing to work with Greece and Turkey to help the Greek and Turkish Cypriots to reunite their island through a just and lasting settlement.

Romania: Mass Media

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with the government of Romania on improving media freedom and media pluralism in that country.

Mr David Lidington: The British Embassy in Bucharest follows the issue of media freedom in Romania closely, given its impact on the quality of democracy and on the rule of law. As part of the Co-operation and Verification Mechanism (CVM), to which Romania has been subject since its EU accession, the European Commission has called on Romania to “review existing standards to safeguard a free and pluralist media”. We have worked closely with the European Commission and the Romanian government in encouraging full implementation of CVM recommendations including on the relationship between the media and state institutions.

Romania: Mass Media

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of trends in media ownership in Romania.

Mr David Lidington: The British Embassy in Bucharest follows developments in the Romanian media closely, including changes in media ownership. The economic crisis of 2008 resulted in questions over the profitability of many media outlets and changes in ownership. The Government considers that a pluralist media is important for media freedom and the freedom of speech as provided for in the Romanian Constitution.

Romania: Mass Media

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with the government of Romania on (a) Central Media Enterprise, (b) Adrian Sârbu and (c) Ronald Lauder.

Mr David Lidington: The Department has had no recent discussions on these specific issues with the government of Romania.

South China Sea

Stephen Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the UK is entitled to be represented before the Permanent Court of Arbitration in Philippines v. China.

Mr Hugo Swire: The UK is not party to the case of Philippines v China before the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and is therefore not entitled to be formally represented before the PCA in this case.

South China Sea

Stephen Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the UK plans to be represented before the Permanent Court of Arbitration in Philippines v. China.

Mr Hugo Swire: The UK is not party to the case of Philippines v China before the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and is therefore not entitled to be formally represented before the PCA in this case.

Bahrain: Politics and Government

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what effect the practice of revoking citizenship from protestors by the Bahraini government has had on UK policy towards that country.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The UK enjoys a strong and constructive relationship with Bahrain where we are able to raise and discuss issues such as the revocation of citizenship of Bahraini nationals. This is often at Ministerial level or through our wider human rights and reform dialogue. We will continue to encourage the Government of Bahrain to ensure that the appeals process is fair and transparent.

British Overseas Territories

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what proposals the Government made aimed at making fully transparent the financial management practices in each member state participant in the Joint Ministerial Council of British Overseas Territories at its fourth meeting in December 2015.

James Duddridge: The Government and Overseas Territories committed at the Joint Ministerial Council to work in partnership as appropriate to support capacity building and the development of expertise in public financial management and economic planning. This includes maintaining sound public finances, building economic resilience and ensuring value for money in use of public funds, including through effective use of audit.

Central African Republic: Elections

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assistance the UK has offered to Central African Republic with preparations for elections in that country in December 2015.

James Duddridge: Free, fair and inclusive elections are critical for the Central African Republic’s future stability, and for successful future reconciliation. As such, the UK supports the Constitutional Court’s ruling that all citizens of the Central African Republic, including internally displaced people and refugees in neighbouring countries, have the right to vote in upcoming elections. The UK is supportive of an EU Election Mission to the Central African Republic. The UK contributes to the UN peacekeeping mission in the Central African Republic and is one of the largest humanitarian donors to the country, providing £58 million since 2013 to Central African Republic and Central African Republic refugees through non-governmental organisations and international organisations.

Turks and Caicos Islands

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what his policy is on the future of the Special Investigation and Prosecution Team in the Turks and Caicos Islands.

James Duddridge: The Special Investigation and Prosecution Team was set up following Sir Robin Auld’s Commission of Inquiry in 2008-2009 which identified a high probability of systemic corruption in the Turks and Caicos Islands. As a result of its investigation, criminal charges were brought against a number of individuals, including former Premier Michael Misick. The trial is expected to start this month and is likely to run for several months. The start of the trial is an important moment for Turks and Caicos Islands that will ensure justice is seen to be done and draw a line under past allegations of systemic corruption. Given that the trial is only just about to start and its outcome is unknown, it is difficult to make firm conclusions on Special Investigation and Prosecution Team’s future at this point. The Turks and Caicos Islands authorities would be involved in any decision as Special Investigation and Prosecution Team works for them not the UK.

Turks and Caicos Islands

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what proportion of the budget of the Turks and Caicos Islands has been allocated to the funding of the Special Investigation and Prosecution Team (SIPT) and associated legal costs; and if he will take steps to offset the cost of SIPT for the Turks and Caicos Islands government to enable the necessary investment in other projects on those islands.

James Duddridge: In 2015/2016, expenditure on the Special Investigation and Prosecution Team represents approximately 1.34 per cent of Turks and Caicos Islands Government expenditure. Legal aid and security costs are 2.2 per cent and 0.98 per cent respectively. The Governor has committed to provide a full and transparent breakdown of Special Investigation and Prosecution Team costs, with as much detail as possible, once the trial has concluded. The implementation of good governance reforms alongside increased tourist arrivals means that Turks and Caicos Islands Government is projected to show a budget surplus of around $40 million in 2015/2016. This has also been supported by a loan guarantee from the Department for International Development to Turks and Caicos Islands Government of up to $260 million. Turks and Caicos Islands Government is therefore well placed to invest in projects without intervention from the UK.

Turks and Caicos Islands

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what progress the Special Investigation and Prosecution Team has made on prosecuting and eliminating corruption in the Turks and Caicos Islands in the last 12 months.

James Duddridge: The Special Investigation and Prosecution Team has completed its investigations following the findings of Sir Robin Auld’s Commission of Inquiry that there was a high probability of systemic corruption in government and the legislature and among public officers in the Turks and Caicos Islands. As a result of those investigations, the trial of a number of individuals, including former Premier Michael Misick and several of his Cabinet Ministers, is expected to start this week.

Eritrea: National Service

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has received on indefinite national service continuing to be practised in Eritrea.

James Duddridge: The British Government continues to have concerns about indefinite national service in Eritrea. We welcomed the Government of Eritrea’s pledge earlier this year to limit national service to 18 months for all new recruits starting from March 2015. However, we have been clear to the government in Asmara that it must now follow through on this commitment and that the change must be publicised widely in Eritrea itself. We have also been clear that the 18 month limit should apply to all conscripts not just those who have been enlisted recently.

Eritrea: Emigration

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the likely effect of the agreements reached at the 2015 Valetta Summit on migration on the flow of refugees and asylum seekers from Eritrea.

James Duddridge: At the Valetta Summit, EU and African leaders made clear their shared determination to provide a comprehensive solution to irregular migration. They agreed an Action Plan that sets out a clear strategy to deal with the root causes of irregular migration and respond to its consequences. The UK will now use our chairmanship of the EU-AU “Khartoum Process” on migration to drive forward delivery of that Plan in the Horn of Africa. The EU launched a £1.3billion Trust Fund at Valetta to improve stability in Africa and tackle the drivers of migration. Over £400 million of that funding will be spent in the Horn of Africa, including Eritrea. This, and other EU and bilateral funding, will be used to build the region’s capacity to fight organised immigration crime, and to help create jobs, security, better living standards and better governance. The UK has been clear to the government of Eritrea that poor respect for human rights is also a driver of migration. At the UN Human Rights Council and in bilateral discussions we have set out to the government of Eritrea steps we believe it needs to take to improve its human rights record, including fulfilling its commitment to limit National Service to 18 months.

Nuclear Weapons

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for the Government's nuclear non-proliferation strategy of the emergence of 3D printing technologies capable of constructing components for possible use in nuclear weapons.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The Government keeps appraised of new technologies and their possible non-proliferation implications, both now and in the future. Although this technique could have some nuclear applications, currently there remain fundamental barriers to proliferation, such as the availability of fissile material.

Religious Freedom

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps UK embassies are taking to promote religious freedoms.

Mr David Lidington: Through our network of Embassies and High Commissions, the Government regularly urges governments across the world to protect the right of all individuals to practise their religion or belief free from persecution or discrimination.We promote this freedom bilaterally by raising individual cases with governments and by seeking to influence them to remove discriminatory legislation or practices. We also promote religious freedom in multilateral fora by working together with our international partnersFor example, in Burma, we have raised our deep concern at the rise of hate speech and religious intolerance with the Burmese authorities and will continue to do so, both publicly and in private. We have supported a number of projects, including developing relationships between Burmese youth and different religious communities, and arranging exchanges between activists on religious freedom in Burma and Indonesia. In Iraq, we are funding a project to prevent intolerance and violence towards religious communities by strengthening the ability of youth and civil society to advocate the right to freedom of religion or belief.Promoting freedom of religion or belief is a priority for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s Human Rights and Democracy Programme. Since 2011, 35 projects have been funded in 12 countries.

Afghanistan: Females

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to promote women's participation in Afghan democracy and civil society.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: Women’s participation in democracy and civil society is a top human rights priority for both the UK and the Government of Afghanistan. We contributed £20 million over the 2014/2015 election cycle. Our election support provided assistance to the Independent Election Commission’s (IEC’s) Gender Unit to improve voter education amongst women and the development of early warning systems at voting centres to reduce the barriers for women voters. In addition, funding was provided to the Asia Foundation, who oversaw training for 300 female provincial council candidates and public outreach work to help broaden support for women’s political participation. I also met with women human rights defenders during my visit to Afghanistan on 10 December.We are also supporting women in civil society through programming on education, women’s economic empowerment, and women’s political participation as well as access to justice and tackling gender-based violence.

Ashraf Fayadh

Dr Tania Mathias: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterpart in the government of Saudi Arabia on the death sentence for Ashraf Fayadh.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: We are aware of, and concerned about, the case of Palestinian national Mr Ashraf Fayadh. We oppose the death penalty in all circumstances and strongly support freedom of expression in every country. We regularly make the Saudi Arabian authorities aware of our views, and will consider suitable opportunities for raising our concerns over this case.

Islamic State

Mr David Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his international counterparts on establishing a regime of sanctions against nations and other entities which trade with Daesh.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The UK has led efforts to create and enforce an international sanctions regime to cut off support, including financial, for Daesh and other terrorist groups, underpinned by UN Security Council Resolutions. UN Security Council Resolution 1267 imposes sanctions on individual and groups associated with Al-Qaida and its affiliates including Daesh. In August 2014, under the UK’s Presidency, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 2170 to restrict Daesh’s financial, trade and recruitment networks, as well as sanctioning individuals. In February 2015, we co-sponsored UN Security Council Resolution 2199, which tightens sanctions on Daesh, and requires all states to prevent the transfer of economic resources to Daesh, including infrastructure. The UK has also worked with other member states to secure EU sanctions listings to target individuals supplying Daesh oil to the Assad regime.

Middle East: Terrorism

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps the Government is taking through the UN to tackle international recruitment of people for terrorist activity in Syria and Iraq.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The UK has led efforts to create and enforce an international legal regime to cut off support for Daesh and other terrorist groups, including through the UN.In August 2014, under the UK’s Presidency we co-sponsored UN Security Council Resolution 2170 which restricted Daesh’s financial, trade and recruitment networks, as well as sanctioning individuals.The UK also co-sponsored resolution 2178, which built on resolution 2170 by strengthening the international response to threats posed by foreign terrorist fighters. The Resolution calls on Member States to prevent the “recruiting, organizing, transporting or equipping of individuals who travel to a State other than their States of residence or nationality for the purpose of the perpetration, planning of, or participation in terrorist acts.

Middle East: Religious Freedom

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to promote international support for and defence of religious minority communities in the Middle East.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: We remain deeply concerned about the plight of Christians and other religious minorities across the Middle East and North Africa. In March this year at a United Nations Security Council debate on the persecution of minorities in the Middle East, I called for bold leadership in the region to continue working for tolerance and reconciliation.In September the UK participated in an international conference in Paris on the subject, and called on the international community to do more to assist vulnerable populations. On 19 November Baroness Anelay and I convened a workshop with non governmental organisations and experts in the field to examine what more Her Majesty’s Government might do to practically support Christians and other minorities in the Middle East and protect Freedom of Religion or Belief. Officials are now examining how to put these ideas into practice.On a practical level, we assisted Kurdish and Yezidi fighters to liberate vulnerable minority groups in Sinjar in Iraq in November. The Royal Air Force provide vital air support for local, legitimate ground forces, focused on defeating ISIL and minimising civilian casualties.We raise violations with individual countries, and work with them to ensure that discriminatory legislation and practices are tackled. We also ensure that the international consensus in the UN on tackling religious intolerance is maintained.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

Trade Missions: Latin America

Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what trade missions to Latin America the Government has organised in the last 12 months; and what such trade missions are planned in the next 12 months.

Anna Soubry: In the last 12 months, UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) has organised the following trade missions to Latin America;Multi-Sector Mission to Colombia and Peru – November 2014Multi-Sector Mission to Mexico and Colombia – November/December 2014Automotive Mission to Mexico - December 2014Oil & Gas Mission to Colombia - March 2015Trade Mission to Mexico – March 2015Trade Mission to Brazil – March 2015Global Sports Mission to Brazil - August 2015Northern PowerHouse Mission to Mexico/Colombia – September/October 2015Water Mission to Brazil (visiting FITABES Trade Show) – October 2015MSB (Medium Size Business) to Brazil (led by Lord Maude) – November 2015Broadcast Mission to Mexico – November 2015Multi- Sector Mission to Colombia and Peru – November 2015Information relating to planned missions from April 2016 onwards is not available at this time. UKTI is currently undertaking business planning for the period in question. The 2016-2017 Events Programme will be available by end of March 2016.

Agriculture: Technology

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what the (a) location and (b) budget is for each agri-tech centre in each year from 2016-17 to 2020-21.

Anna Soubry: The planned budgets (2016/17 to 2020/21) and locations of the four Centres for Agricultural Innovation are:Centre for Crop Health and Protection (CHAP) - headquarters in York at the National AgriFood Innovation Campus in Sand Hutton16/1717/1818/1919/2020/21£m6.54.34.40.00.0Centre for Innovation Excellence in Livestock (CIEL) - headquarters in York at the National AgriFood Innovation Campus in Sand Hutton16/1717/1818/1919/2020/21£m8.66.04.50.00.0Agricultural Engineering Precision Innovation Centre (Agri-EPI) - hubs in Edinburgh, Harper Adams University (Shropshire) and Cranfield University (Bedfordshire)16/1717/1818/1919/2020/21£m5.33.63.00.00.0Centre for Agricultural Informatics (Agrimetrics) - headquarters in Harpenden (Hertfordshire) at Rothamsted Research16/1717/1818/1919/2020/21£m3.22.91.80.00.0

Business: UK Membership of EU

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the potential effect on businesses of the UK leaving the EU.

Anna Soubry: The Government is focused on delivering a successful renegotiation: it believes Britain’s interests are best served by being part of a reformed European Union, if necessary changes can be agreed. The Government believes it can and will succeed in reforming and renegotiating our relationship with the EU and campaigning to keep the UK in the EU on that basis.

Iron and Steel: Manufacturing Industries

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the viability of the UK steel industry over the next 10 years.

Anna Soubry: We have been working very closely with steel stakeholders to understand the needs of the sector both now and going forward. In addition, through the Competitiveness & Productivity Steel Working Group we have commissioned an independent external report to identify the relative strengths and weaknesses of the UK steel industry, and consider how this could change over different time horizons. The outcomes will support the UK steel industry develop their strategic position moving forward, and clarify how the Government can best support the sector improve its competitiveness over the short, medium and long term.

Small Businesses: Loans

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what estimate he has made of the number of small businesses which have received financial assistance from (a) peer-to-peer lenders and (b) other alternative funding sources.

Anna Soubry: According to NESTA, peer-to-peer business lending in the UK grew at a rate of 250 per cent annually between 2012 and 2014. The Peer-to-Peer Finance Association publishes quarterly updates, which show net new lending of £251m in the third quarter of 2015 of which £91m was to small businesses. Although the number of businesses is not stated, Funding Circle (which accounts for £66m of the £91m net new lending) had 10,755 borrowers at the end of the quarter. The total is therefore likely to be close to 15,000.Equity crowdfunded deal numbers and investment totals are less readily available. The British Business Bank cites market investment data recorded by Beauhurst which show that in the first half of 2014, £24m was raised across 101 crowdfunded equity investments. Using survey data, NESTA has produced a higher estimate of £31m for the same period and £84m for 2014 as a whole.

Green Investment Bank

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he plans to take to ensure that the Green Investment Bank continues to pursue its principal objectives after privatisation.

Anna Soubry: Green investment is what the Green Investment Bank (GIB) does and is where its value lies. It is clear from preliminary feedback that potential investors are interested in GIB precisely because of its unique green specialism and its existing forward business plan and pipeline of green projects. Investors will have sound commercial reasons to maintain GIB’s green focus and continue operating in accordance with its clearly stated green principles and highly transparent and robust green reporting practices.As a key part of any sale discussions, potential investors will be asked to confirm their commitment to these values and to set out how they propose to protect them. We envisage this would involve new shareholders agreeing to:• ensure GIB continues to invest in a way that achieves a positive green impact; and• maintain GIB’s existing standards for reporting on its green investment performance as well as continue providing for independent assurance of this.

Motor Vehicles

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what progress has been made on pilot schemes of driverless cars.

Anna Soubry: Following the Innovate UK competition, ‘Introducing Driverless Cars to UK roads’ in July last year three exciting world leading projects, UKAutodrive, Venturer and GATEway, are now underway and making good progress.The Government-backed Milton Keynes driverless Pathfinder pods have been incorporated into the UKAutodrive project. They were demonstrated recently at the ITS World Congress in Bordeaux and attracted a great deal of international attention. Venturer, based in Bristol is delivering important insights around situational awareness, a key area for autonomous systems. The GATEway project will evaluate the integration and acceptance of automated vehicles in the real world.

Adult Education: Finance

Peter Kyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what estimate he has made of the time needed to devolve the adult skills budget; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Boles: We expect to be able to fully devolve the adult education budget to local areas that have agreed devolution deals with Government and where readiness conditions (as set out in the devolution agreements) have been met during this parliament. This timetable will ensure other important work such as the further education area reviews can first be completed and implementation plans put into action.

Apprentices

Peter Kyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will set a target for apprenticeship achievements over this Parliament.

Nick Boles: We are committed to reaching 3 million apprenticeship starts in 2020. We are establishing a new Institute for Apprenticeships to safeguard quality but do not intend to set a target for achievements.Further data on apprenticeships achievements can be found in table 6.2 of the main SFR: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/learner-participation-outcomes-and-level-of-highest-qualification-held

Apprentices

Peter Kyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what the relationship will be between the new Institute for Apprentices and the industry-led body that will administer the Apprenticeships Levy.

Nick Boles: It is our intention that the independent Institute for Apprenticeships (IfA) will be established by April 2017. The Institute will approve apprenticeship standards and safeguard apprenticeship quality.The body will not be responsible for the operational functions associated with funding of apprenticeships and the administration of the levy. These will be fulfilled by the Government’s operational agencies.

Apprentices: Taxation

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what recent discussions he has had with the devolved administrations on the distribution and use of funds raised by the proposed Apprenticeship Levy.

Nick Boles: Skills policy is a devolved area so the devolved administrations will continue to have control over how to support businesses through training and apprenticeships.We are working closely with the Welsh Government and other devolved administrations to ensure they get their fair share of the levy and can work out how best to use it to complement their own apprenticeships and skills policies.We will engage with skills ministers in the devolved administrations, including Julie James AC/AM, to do all we can to make the levy work for employers and would-be apprentices across the UK.

UK Trade with EU

Mr Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will estimate the UK's current trade deficit with the EU.

Anna Soubry: This data is publicly available and can be found on the ONS website in the ‘Balance of Payments, Quarter 2 (April to June) 2015’.

Wales Office

Infrastructure: Wales

Margaret Ferrier: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what steps his Department has taken to promote use of the UK Guarantees Scheme in Wales.

Stephen Crabb: When I meet with members of the business community in Wales, it is clear to me the importance of the UK Guarantees Scheme in providing investors with the vital financial certainty to initiate critical new infrastructure projects in Wales and throughout the UK. HM Government has a memorandum of understanding with Hitachi and Horizon Nuclear Power to support investment for the proposed nuclear development at Wylfa Newydd; discussions around the provision of a Government Guarantee form a key part of this. The Project will create up to 1,000 permanent jobs and provide excellent opportunities for Welsh businesses to be a part of the supply chain.

Department for Education

Children's Centres: Antenatal Care

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will take steps to increase the role of children's centres in supporting expectant parents and improving integrated working among antenatal support services.

Mr Sam Gyimah: All children’s centres must provide access to health services – either by providing the services or by providing advice and assistance on gaining access to services. Local authorities and local health commissioners have statutory duties to consider providing services through children’s centres to ensure that families get access to the services they need. The transfer of responsibility for public health services to local authorities in October this year provides new opportunities for local areas to configure health services to best effect.The Department of Health has been working with local authorities in order to ensure sharing regular and timely updates of live birth data between NHS trusts and children’s centres and have mapped out a process for putting in place appropriate arrangements to support a national solution.Children's centres can also have a key role in delivering integrated reviews, which check a child's health and educational progress at age two.Future policy on the role of children's centres in supporting expectant parents and improving integrated working among antenatal support services will be informed by the planned consultation on the future of children’s centre services, which is due to be launched shortly. The consultation will offer parents, prospective parents, carers, local authorities and key stakeholders the opportunity to influence and drive what we expect from children’s centre services and where we see them having the greatest impact.

University Technical Colleges

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she has taken to encourage applications to university technical colleges.

Nick Boles: Like all academies, each university technical college (UTC) is responsible for publicising their school and encouraging applications. Officials from the Department for Education and the Baker Dearing Educational Trust provide UTCs with advice to support pupil recruitment, drawing on the best practice from UTCs and other new schools. Statutory guidance to schools on careers guidance is clear that they should allow UTCs to engage with their pupils on their premises. This guidance can be found at GOV.UK: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/careers-guidance-provision-for-young-people-in-schools. This careers guidance should ensure pupils have information about their full range of education and training options.

History: Curriculum

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of the history curriculum in state schools is comprised of British history.

Nick Gibb: All young people should, as part of a broad and balanced education, acquire a firm grasp of the history of the country in which they live, and learn how different events and periods relate to each other. That is why the history curriculum, taught in maintained schools for key stages 1 to 3 from September 2014, sets out, within a clear chronological framework, the core knowledge that will enable pupils to know and understand the history of Britain from its first settlers to the development of the institutions that help to define our national life today.The new GCSE content criteria require a minimum of 40 per cent British history, an increase from the 25 per cent required under the previous GCSE. The A level content criteria require a minimum of 20 per cent British history. The new GCSE will be taught from 2016, with first examination in 2018. The new A level has been taught since September 2015, with first examination in 2017.Alongside geography, history is one of the two subjects in the humanities pillar of the EBacc. The EBacc consists of the core group of subjects that provide a rigorous academic education and the government’s goal is that, in time, 90 per cent of pupils will enter GCSEs in the EBacc subjects. The numbers studying GCSE history had been stagnant for a decade before the introduction of the EBacc. With the introduction of the EBac performance measures the proportion of the cohort entered for history in state fundedschools has risen from 30 per cent of pupils in 2010 to a provisional figure of 40 per cent in 2015.

Adoption

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many people have been appointed as prospective adopters in each of the last six years.

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many children have been subject of concurrent planning for adoption in each of the last six years in each local authority; and what funding her Department has provided to (a) carers and (b) the British Association for Adoption and Fostering in each of the last five years.

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, which local authorities have contracted out their adoption functions to a third party; and what the name is of each such contractor.

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many children have been approved for adoption in each of the last six years.

Edward Timpson: Information on the number of prospective adopters receiving approval was first collected from all adoption agencies during the year ending 2013.In 2013 and 2014 this data was collected by Ofsted and figures are published at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/childrens-social-care-statisticsSince 2014, the data has been collected as part of the Adoption Leadership Board (ALB) quarterly adoption survey and figures are published at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/adoption-system-performanceThe number of children who received an adoption decision maker (ADM) decision that the child should be placed for adoption during each of the last five years is published in table E4 of the “Children Looked After in England (including adoption and care leavers)” Statistical First Release (SFR), published at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/children-looked-after-in-england-including-adoption-2014-to-2015Figures for the last five years are provided in table 2 below:Table 2 – Number of ADM decisions during the year ending 31 March20103,91020114,83020125,69020136,52020146,170Source: SSDA903 data collectionOfsted publishes local authority level information on the number of children in foster placements that are subject to concurrent planning. The information is available via the following links:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/fostering-in-england-1-april-2012-to-31-march-2013https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/fostering-in-england-1-april-2013-to-31-march-2014https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/fostering-in-england-1-april-2014-to-31-march-2015During 2014-15, we provided a grant of £199,520 for the British Association of Adoption and Fostering in order to provide training to social workers. This grant included training for social workers on fostering for adoption.We do not collect information centrally on which local authorities have contracted out their adoption functions to a third party.

Regional Schools Commissioners

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the cost of regional school commissioners in each of the next three years; and if she will make a statement.

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the budget for the Regional Schools Commissioner for South-Central England and North-West London is for each of the next three years; and if she will make a statement.

Edward Timpson: At present, I am unable to provide detailed information on the budget for the Regional Schools Commissioners for each of the next three years.The Department’s spending review settlement was agreed in November. The Department has now begun a business planning process to devolve this budget internally to specific activities and functions. This work is intended to finish in early 2016, when the future budgets for all the Regional School Commissioners’ offices, including the South-Central and North-West London office, will be agreed for the next financial year (2016-17) and beyond.

Counter-terrorism

Stella Creasy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if her Department will publish the guidance it has issued to schools and colleges for the implementation of Prevent strategy activities for all age groups.

Edward Timpson: The Department for Education has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Japanese Language

Dr Lisa Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans the Government has to increase the study of Japanese in schools.

Nick Gibb: The government supports the efforts of the Japan Foundation to help schools teaching Japanese. Since September 2014, maintained primary schools in England must teach a modern or ancient foreign language to pupils at key stage 2 (ages 7 to 11). Schools can choose which language or languages to teach and should enable pupils to make substantial progress in one language by the end of primary school.The government took action in 2010 to halt the decline in the number of school children taking language GCSEs by including it within the English Baccalaureate. This has had a positive effect on the take up of languages in schools. The proportion of the cohort in state funded schools entered for a modern foreign language has risen from 40 per cent in 2010 to 49 per cent in 2015. The government’s goal is that, in time, at least 90 per cent of pupils enter GCSEs in the EBacc subjects of English, maths, science, humanities and languages.

Mental Health: Young People

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help prevent loneliness and social isolation among younger people.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The Department for Education has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Ministry of Justice

Ministry of Justice: Ministerial Policy Advisers

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, on how many occasions a special adviser in his Department accompanied a Minister on an overseas trip since May 2015.

Caroline Dinenage: As has been the case under successive Administrations, civil servants, including special advisers, may routinely accompany their Ministers on official visits. All ministerial travel is undertaken in accordance with the Ministerial Code.

Convictions: Foreign Nationals

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many nationals of other countries living in the UK have been convicted of a crime since 30 September 2014; and how many such people came from each country.

Andrew Selous: The Ministry of Justice Court Proceedings Database does not hold the nationality of offenders convicted or sentenced for criminal offences in England and Wales. Obtaining this information would incur disproportionate cost.

Ministry of Justice: Redundancy

Wayne David: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to paragraph 2.149 of the Spending Review, where he expects job cuts in his Department; and how many such jobs he expects to be cut.

Dominic Raab: The Secretary of State for Justice has set out his vision for a one nation justice system, with swift and certain justice in a reformed courts system and transformed prisons that become places of rehabilitation, not just incarceration. Those on the frontline will be empowered to make the right decisions for those who use their services.This means a smaller and smarter Whitehall department with less bureaucracy, including savings which do not impact on staff numbers, such as changes to our estate, our major contracts and better use of technology.We also expect to reduce headquarters and administrative headcount and costs over the course of the parliament. This will include reduced reliance on contractors and contingent labour and fewer staff based in expensive London premises.Final decisions on the scale of staff reductions have not yet been reached.

Personal Injury: Compensation

Wayne David: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to paragraph 1.143 of the Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015, what the evidential basis is for the statement that whiplash claims cost the country £2 billion per year.

Dominic Raab: The government received and analysed data from numerous sources when formulating the announcement in the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement. The quoted figures were arrived at by combining published industry estimates along with data from government and other sources.

Asylum: Appeals

David T. C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 3 November 2015 to Question 17668, if he will collect information on how much has been spent from the public purse on providing legal aid for asylum seekers who wish to purse immigration appeals.

Mr Shailesh Vara: The information is not held centrally.

Prisons: Locks and Keys

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what information his Department holds on the number of occasions when due to the loss or theft of keys, a prison has had to be relocked between (a) May 2010 and May 2011, (b) May 2011 and May 2012, (c) May 2012 and May 2013, (d) May 2013 and May 2014, (e) May 2014 and May 2015 and (f) after May 2015 to date; and what the cost to the public purse was of each such incident.

Andrew Selous: Security is paramount within prisons and it is important that the risk of any potential key compromise is addressed as quickly as possible to protect the public. When a key/lock incident is reported an immediate investigation is undertaken to assess the risk and unless it is clear that security has not been compromised, locking mechanisms and keys will be replaced and/or other necessary remedial action will be taken.Between 2005 and May 2010 there were 16 relocks which resulted in costs of £1,280,234. Since May 2010 there have been 8 relocks, at a cost of £529,973.The table below shows the number of incidents and cost to the public purse of re-lock within prisons in England and Wales due to loss or theft of keys and for the time periods requested.Time PeriodNo of IncidentsTotal Cost (excluding VAT)1 May 2010 – 1 May 20113£337,5532 May 2011 – 1 May 20121Nil cost2 May 2012 – 1 May 2013002 May 2013 – 1 May 20141£28,8122 May 2014 – 1 May 20152£46,3962 May 2015 – 9 Dec 20151£117,212Notes:Figures exclude VAT.The 2011/12 incident involved a privately operated prison and the cost of re-lock was met by the private contractor in full at nil cost to the public purse.Prisons are also responsible for re-locks of crown court cells. Figures exclude re-lock of cells in two crown courts during the period.The figures quoted have been drawn from live administrative databases and may subsequently be amended. Due care is taken during processing and analysis, but the detail is subject to inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system.

Prisons: Construction

Mr Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 8 December 2015 to Question 18626, what estimate he has made of the average cost of (a) the five new prisons planned to be open in the current Parliament and (b) the four new prisons planned to open after the current Parliament; and what estimate he has made of the average time that will be taken from application for planning permission to completion in each such set of such prisons.

Andrew Selous: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given to PQ 18626 on 8 December 2015.

Just Solutions International: Recruitment

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what (a) consultants, (b) non-executive directors and (c) associates have been employed by Just Solutions International since it was established; when each such person was appointed; and what the remuneration of each such person has been.

Andrew Selous: This information was provided to the House on 17 March 2015. As I told the house then, Just Solutions International (JSi) was a brand within the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) that the Agency adopted in early 2013. The Ministry of Justice contracted with PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC) for the provision of support for the development by NOMS of a business model to generate commercial income through the provision of advice and support to other governments on prison and probation issues. The contract was awarded to PwC in September 2012 and was for a period of 8 months from January to August 2013. The amount paid for the provision of services was £101,179 excluding VAT.Through JSi, NOMS also worked with PwC in Pakistan supporting reform of Punjab prisons. This project was funded by the Foreign and Commonwealth office, which paid PwC £7,308.40 excluding VAT.

Fines: Surcharges

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many times the victims' surcharge has been (a) imposed, (b) collected, (c) cancelled and (d) outstanding for people receiving a (i) conditional discharge, (ii) fine, (iii) suspended sentence, (iv) community sentence and (v) custodial sentence in each financial year since 2010.

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the value is of victims' surcharge (a) imposed, (b) collected, (c) cancelled and (d) outstanding in each financial year since 2010.

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the value is of victims' surcharge (a) imposed, (b) collected, (c) cancelled and (d) outstanding for (i) adults, (ii)  youths and (iii) organisations in each financial year since 2010.

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the total is of (a) uncollected and (b) cancelled victims' surcharges.

Mike Penning: The table below shows the value of victim surcharge orders imposed, collected, cancelled and outstanding since April 2011.Victim SurchargeVictim surcharge imposedValue of victim surcharge collected in the same year of impositionValue of victim surcharge cancelled in the same year of imposition (administrative and legal cancellations) 1Value of victim surcharge outsanding at end of year of impositionTotal value of victim surcharge collected regardless of imposition date 2Total value of victim surcharge administratively cancelled regardless of imposition date 3Total value of victim surcharge legally cancelled regardless of imposition date 3Total value of victim surcharge outstanding regardless of imposition date 2010/11Data is only available in this format from April 2011 onwards 4£501,887£473,116£7,219,0002011/12£12,199,956£6,810,532£645,381£4,744,043£10,281,567£1,355,514£1,163,017£10,121,0002012/13£15,508,307£7,607,886£888,027£7,012,395£10,517,641£1,605,519£1,384,779£12,084,0002013/14£33,726,535£15,343,460£2,265,389£16,117,686£19,548,368£2,395,662£2,937,982£21,110,0002014/15£38,631,424£17,302,260£2,350,532£18,978,631£24,569,735£2,362,914£3,711,748£29,381,000 The HMCTS Trust Statement also provides financial information on fines, victim surcharge and other types of financial impositions ordered in the criminal courts for each financial year since 2010-11.It is not possible to subdivide the value of victims’ surcharge imposed, collected and cancelled into the categories of adults, youths and organisations nor report on how many times the victims’ surcharge was imposed, collected and cancelled for various sentences; to do so would incur disproportionate cost. Data notes:1. The value of victim surcharge that was cancelled in the same year of imposition cannot be broken down into administrative and legal cancellations.2. The ‘total value of victim surcharge collected in a year’ includes the ‘value of victim surcharge collected in the same year of imposition.3. The figures representing the total value of victim surcharge administratively cancelled include the values of those victim surcharge impositions administratively cancelled in the same year of imposition. Impositions are only administratively cancelled in accordance with a strict criteria. Legal cancellations occur after the case has been reconsidered by a Judge or Magistrate.4. The reporting functionality from which this data has been extracted has only been in existence since April 2011 and it is not possible to break the data for 2010 down in the same format.

Criminal Proceedings: Fees and Charges

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the administrative costs was of implementing and enforcing the criminal courts charge; and what the projected cost of administering that charge is in each of the next three years.

Mr Shailesh Vara: The costs of the criminal courts charge implementation project were £534,760.The cost of enforcing the criminal courts charge cannot be separated from the total cost of enforcing all types of court ordered financial impositions. No additional resources have been allocated to the National Compliance and Enforcement Service within HMCTS specifically as a result of the criminal courts charge.

Personal Injury: Compensation

Wayne David: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many whiplash claims there have been in each of the last five years.

Dominic Raab: Government data is compiled by the Compensation Recovery Unit at the Department for Work and Pensions. The figures for the number of whiplash claims are shown in the table below:YearTotal Motor PI ClaimsTotal Whiplash (including claims for neck and back)2010/11790,000740,0002011/12830,000760,0002012/13820,000750,0002013/14770,000700,0002014/15760,000690,000The Government remains concerned about the number of claims and the impact they have on motor insurance premiums. Despite an overall decrease since 2011/12, claims volumes are still at historically high levels, being some 50% higher than in 2006. In his Autumn Statement the Chancellor therefore announced tough new measures to control costs and reduce the number of unnecessary whiplash claims made.

Prisons: Location

Wayne David: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment his Department has made of the effect on families of prisoners of the sale of inner-city prisons and their replacement with out of town buildings.

Andrew Selous: In looking at our strategy for the future configuration of the prison estate, we will consider a range of factors including the ability of families to access visits. Beyond the closure of HMP Holloway, no decision on further closures, or where any new prisons will be sited, has been made.

Courts: Fines

Mr Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 8 December 2015 to Question 18492, what assessment he has made of the level of compliance in magistrates' and crown courts with the procedures set out in that Answer for seeking confirmation of defendants' income.

Mr Shailesh Vara: It is a judicial decision to seek evidence of a defendant’s income and means to pay. Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) does not record data on the number of instances where this information is required or provided.

Magistrates

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many magistrates there were on 1 April (a) 1989, (b) 1994, (c) 2000, (d) 2005, (e) 2010, (f) 2014 and (g) 2015.

Mr Shailesh Vara: The requested information that is recorded is provided in the table below. Data for 1989 is not recorded. The reduction in the number of magistrates reflects the reduction in the workload in the adult criminal court. The role of a magistrate remains a sought after one and competition for vacancies tends to be strong.199430,054200030,308200528,253201028,607201421,626201519,634

Prison Service: Re-employment

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prison officers who have received (a) severance and (b) redundancy packages since May 2010 have subsequently been re-employed as prison officers.

Andrew Selous: The Ministry of Justice has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Ministry of Justice: Contracts

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, which contracts worth more than £5 million his Department has signed since 1 September 2014; with which organisations such contracts have been signed; what the purpose was of each contract; what the (a) annual and (b) total cost is of each such contract; and what the length is of each such contract.

Mike Penning: All contracts awarded since 1 September 2014 over the value of £5 million are published on the Contracts Finder website:Notices from 26 February 2015 onwards can be found at https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/SearchThis covers all notices from the 26th February 2015 onwards.An archive of notices going back to 11 February 2011 can be found at: https://data.gov.uk/data/contracts-finder-archive/

Criminal Proceedings: Fees and Charges

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the total cost to the public purse has been of legislating for and implementing the criminal courts change to date.

Mr Shailesh Vara: The Ministry of Justice does not collect data relating to the cost of legislating for specific provisions in this way.The costs of the criminal courts charge implementation project were £534,760.

Prisons: Visits

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisons allow children to take school books in with them when visiting.

Andrew Selous: This information is not held centrally.

Prisons: Playgrounds

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisons have children's play areas.

Andrew Selous: This information is not held centrally.

National Offender Management Service: Just Solutions International

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of the National Offender Management Service budget in (a) staffing resources, (b) allocation of civil service time and (c) funding was set aside for the operation of Just Solutions International throughout its lifespan.

Andrew Selous: No funding was allocated within the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) budget for the operation of Just Solutions International (JSi), and exact calculations were not made to apportion staff time on JSi. Under the business model, services provided by JSi were to be provided on a cost recovery basis.

Scotland Office

Females: Scotland

Ms Tasmina Ahmed-Sheikh: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, when he plans to publish the Government's response to the report, The role and contribution of women in the Scottish economy, published in March 2015.

David Mundell: The Government will be responding to the recommendations in the report in due course, and discussions between Professor Sawers and the UK Government are continuing on this matter.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport

Google: Data Protection

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many requests under section 42 of the Data Protection Act have been made in respect of (a) Google Commerce Limited, (b) Google Inc., (c) Google Payment Limited and (d) Google UK Limited.

Mr Edward Vaizey: Information relating to the number of requests under section 42 of the Data Protection Act that have been made in respect of (a) Google Commerce Limited, (b) Google Inc, (c) Google Payment Limited and (d) Google UK Limited is outlined below:YearGoogle IncGoogle UK LtdGoogle Payment Limited2012/201341602013/20141402014/20153032015/2016100

Data Protection: Assessments

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much the Information Commissioner's Office has spent on processing assessments pursuant to section 42 of the Data Protection Act 1998 in each of the last five financial years; how many such requests that Office has received in each of the those years; and what the recorded outcomes were of those requests.

Mr Edward Vaizey: Under section 42 of the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA), any person who is, or believes that he is, directly affected by the processing of personal data, can ask the Information Commissioner to consider whether the processing is likely to comply with the law. On receiving such a request, the Commissioner is obliged to consider the concern and make an assessment. Any such request, and cases taken forward are dealt with by the ICO's customer contact and performance improvement business areas. The ICO does not cost up S42 assessments separately from other data protection casework, but the total staffing costs for these two business areas for the last five financial years are set out below: 2015/16 (April-Nov)£2,883,256.142014/15£3,879,782.832013/14£3,969,104.172012/13£3,581,161.822011/12£3,389,336.87 Numbers of assessments received and concluded for each of the past 5 years are set out below:Financial years2010-112011-122012-132013-142014-15Number of assessments received under s42 DPA1303412980137601473814268Number of assessments completed under s42 DPA1427612725142801549215052   The recorded outcomes of those assessments are set out below:Financial yearsOutcome of s42 assessment2010-112011-122012-132013-142014-15Not progressed14%11%13%14%Compliance likely22%21%22%19%Compliance unlikely33%31%35%34%Ineligible/Made too early27%36%30%33%Reopened - pending final outcome4%1%No Action for Data Controller35%Data Controller Action required22%Concern to be raised with Data Controller17%compliance advice given to Data Controller10%Response needed from Data Controller7%Complaint not applicable under DPA4%General advice given to Data Controller4%Data Controller outside UK1%Improvement action plan agreed with Data Controller1%

Mobile Phones

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much has been spent on the Mobile Infrastructure Project as of the end of November 2015; and what proportion of that figure was spent on (a) construction, (b) planning permission, (c) administration and (d) other costs.

Mr Edward Vaizey: As at the end of November 2015, spend on the Mobile Infrastructure Project is £9.1 Million. The breakdown of this spend is not in the format requested but the following information can be provided:Site Builds - £0.9 Million.Site Searches and acquisitions, which includes obtaining planning permission - £5.1 Million.Supplier management and programme management costs and one-off supplier deliverables - £3 Million The above spend relates to concluded and ongoing activities to enable identification of suitable locations to build masts. The spend in respect of Site Builds includes payments for some of the masts that are already on air.

Aerials

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what the (a) location is of each mast which has been erected and (b) status is of further masts currently in planning as part of the Mobile Infrastructure Project.

Mr Edward Vaizey: There are 15 live MIP masts as at the end of November 2015. These masts are in the following locations:Grantham and Stamford, LincolnshireWeaverthorpe, North YorkshireNorth Molton, DevonPortesham, West DorsetRoadwater, SomersetIpswich, Suffolk​Rattlesden, SuffolkSeaton, CornwallPeakswater, CornwallCalstock, CornwallWeston Green, CambridgeshireRothwell, LincolnshireManaccan, CornwallLondonderry, Derry and Strabane - Northern IrelandFermanagh, Fermanagh and Omagh - Northern Ireland Over 50 other potential mast sites are currently being progressed by our supplier with the aim of delivering as many of these as possible by the project end date of 31 March 2016.

Broadband

Richard  Arkless: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department has taken to provide to internet service providers detailed information relating to the broadband Universal Services Obligation announced by the Prime Minister on 7 November 2015.

Mr Edward Vaizey: The Government’s Universal Service Commitment will allow universal access to speeds of at least 2 Megabits per second through the option of satellite broadband connections by the end of 2015. In addition, an £8 million Market Test Pilot fund is piloting a number of technologies and funding models, including satellite solutions. The results of these pilots will help inform future policy to extend superfast broadband coverage beyond 95%. Avanti, a broadband provider using satellite technology, is currently operational in Dumfries and Galloway and providing superfast coverage.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport: Ministerial Policy Advisers

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, on how many occasions a special adviser in his Department accompanied a Minister on an overseas trip since May 2015.

Mr Edward Vaizey: As has been the case under successive Administrations, civil servants, including special advisers, may routinely accompany their Ministers on official visits.Information relating to Ministers' overseas visits are published on my Department’s website, as part of the Government’s wider transparency agenda.All ministerial travel is undertaken in accordance with the Ministerial Code.

Horse Racing: Betting

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether his Department has examined the funding of horseracing in (a) Ireland and (b) France to inform its policy making on the Horse Betting Levy.

Tracey Crouch: To inform work to replace the current levy system, we have commissioned an independent economic analysis of the costs and funding of horseracing. This economic analysis work will also examine relevant comparable models.

Museums and Galleries: Finance

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to paragraph 1.273 of the Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015, how much funding he plans to provide to the (a) Science Museum, (b) Victoria and Albert Museum and (c) British Museum.

Mr Edward Vaizey: The Chancellor announced in the Spending Review 2015 that government will invest £150 million to support the British Museum, Science Museum and Victoria and Albert Museum to replace out of date museum storage at Blythe House with new world-class storage facilities with public access. The allocations to each museum are yet to be determined.

Horse Racing: Betting

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to paragraph 2.152 of Budget 2015, published in March 2015, whether his Department has had discussions with the European Commission on the compatibility of the Horserace Betting Right with the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.

Tracey Crouch: Officials have held discussions with the European Commission on the compatibility of a new Horserace Betting Right with the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.

Horse Racing: Betting

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether his Department has examined the funding of horseracing from remote gambling in France and Ireland to inform its policy on the funding of horseracing in Britain.

Tracey Crouch: To inform work to replace the current levy system, we have commissioned an independent economic analysis of the costs and funding of horseracing. This economic analysis work will also examine relevant comparable models

Sports: Drugs

Craig Whittaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the prevalence of the use of performance drugs among young people in sport.

Tracey Crouch: Performance enhancing drugs remain a threat to the integrity of sport and the health and wellbeing of all our athletes. The Government supports the work of UK Anti-Doping which works tirelessly to ensure athletes and sport are clean. Through testing programmes, intelligence sharing with law-enforcement agencies on supplying and trafficking, and its excellent athlete education initiatives, UKAD is one of the world's most highly regarded national anti-doping organisations

Broadband: Wales

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what proportion of (a) homes and (b) businesses in Wales have access to superfast broadband.

Mr Edward Vaizey: Ofcom’s Connected Nations Infrastructure Report 2015 states that in May 2015, 79% of homes and businesses in Wales had access to superfast broadband. The full report can be found here -http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/research/infrastructure/2015/downloads/connected_nations2015.pdfThe Government’s programme to deliver superfast broadband has ensured that so far more than 504,000 additional homes and businesses in Wales now have access to superfast broadband, which would not have been reached commercially, following almost £67 million of contracted Government funding.

Broadband: Scotland

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what proportion of (a) homes and (b) businesses in Scotland have access to superfast broadband.

Mr Edward Vaizey: Ofcom’s Connected Nations Infrastructure Report 2015 states that in May 2015, 73% of homes and businesses in Scotland had access to superfast broadband. The full report can be found here -http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/research/infrastructure/2015/downloads/connected_nations2015.pdf.The Government’s programme to deliver superfast broadband has ensured that so far more than 356,000 additional homes and businesses in Scotland now have access to superfast broadband, which would not have been reached commercially, following investment of over £100 million of contracted Government funding.

Broadband

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what proportion of (a) homes and (b) businesses in England have access to superfast broadband.

Mr Edward Vaizey: Ofcom’s Connected Nations Infrastructure Report 2015 states that in May 2015, 83% of homes and businesses in England had access to superfast broadband. The full report can be found here -http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/research/infrastructure/2015/downloads/connected_nations2015.pdf.The Government’s programme to deliver superfast broadband has ensured that so far more than 2.4 million additional homes and businesses in England now have access to superfast broadband, which would not have been reached commercially, following well over £313 million of contracted Government funding.

Broadband: Northern Ireland

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what proportion of (a) homes and (b) businesses in Northern Ireland have access to superfast broadband.

Mr Edward Vaizey: Ofcom’s Connected Nations Infrastructure Report 2015 states that in May 2015, 77% of homes and businesses in Northern Ireland had access to superfast broadband. The full report can be found here -http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/research/infrastructure/2015/downloads/connected_nations2015.pdf.The Government’s programme to deliver superfast broadband has ensured that so far more than 18,000 additional homes and businesses in Northern Ireland now have access to superfast broadband, which would not have been reached commercially, following over £11.4 million of contracted Government funding.

Broadband: Rural Areas

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 9 November 2015 to Question 13628, whether the £230 million spend incurred by BT is an addition to the £683 million recorded as state aid receipts in BT's accounts.

Mr Edward Vaizey: The £230m is BT expenditure and would therefore be in addition to receipts recorded on the BT annual accounts.

Judaism: Festivals and Special Occasions

Mr Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, which Ministers of his Department attended events to celebrate Chanukah in (a) 2014 and (b) 2015.

Mr Edward Vaizey: I attended the Reception for Festival of Chanukah - Mr Speaker's annual celebration to mark the Festival of Chanukah, on Wednesday 17th December 2014.

Sports: Finance

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of grassroots sports funding; and if he will make a statement.

Tracey Crouch: DCMS have recently gone through a detailed spending review process which has recognised the enormous value of investing in sport, resulting in an excellent settlement for Sport England. Earlier this year we consulted on plans for a new strategy for sport which will be published shortly and which sets a clear direction for future grassroots sport funding

Gaming Machines

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 7 December 2015 to Question 18388, when he expects to publish the results of the Government's evaluation of the effects of ending unsupervised stakes above £50 on fixed odds betting terminals in betting shops.

Tracey Crouch: I hope to publish the evaluation early in the new year.

Tennis: Roehampton

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether the Government (a) has made or (b) plans to make any contribution to the cost of (i) the construction and (ii) the running of the National Tennis Centre at Roehampton.

Tracey Crouch: The National Tennis Centre (NTC) at Roehampton is a privately funded enterprise owned by the Lawn Tennis Association.

Sports

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what research his Department has conducted or commissioned on the economic benefit of major sports teams to local economies; and if he will make a statement.

Tracey Crouch: Sport makes a huge contribution to the UK economy, attracting participants and visitors from the UK and abroad.The value of sport and physical activity tothe UK economy is estimated at around £40 billion each year, or nearly 3% of UKGross Value Added.Sport related consumer spending was worth around £30 billion in 2012 - over £1 billion of this comes from spending on spectator sports.Visit Britain's study on Football Tourism found that total spending by international visitors who attended a football match was £684 million in 2014. Visitors who attended a match had an average spend on average £855 in the UK, compared with an average spend of £628 for those who did not attend a match.The latest Sport Satellite Account which details these figures can be found at :https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/450258/UK_Sport_Satellite_Account__2011_and_2012.pdf.Visit Britain's study can be found via this link:https://www.visitbritain.org/sites/default/files/vb-corporate/Documents-Library/documents/2015-9%20VisitBritain%20Report_Football%20tourism%20scores%20for%20Britain.pdf

Bookmakers

Carolyn Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if he will make an assessment of the effectiveness of the self-exclusion pilot schemes introduced by bookmakers in Medway and Glasgow.

Tracey Crouch: I refer the honourable member to the written response given in UIN number 14483 on 16th November 2015.

Broadband

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what proportion of the total declared claw back from BT under National Broadband Scheme contracts has been reallocated to local authorities for additional roll-out under the Scheme.

Mr Edward Vaizey: All of the£129 million clawback funding that has been announced by BT is available to the local authorities to support additional roll-out, subject to suitable deployment opportunities being identified which ensure value for money.

Broadband

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what additional funding allocations have been provided to each local authority as a result of declared claw back from BT under the National Broadband Scheme.

Mr Edward Vaizey: Thanks to the way we have constructed the contracts, BT has announced £129 million of clawback funding. This is available to the local authorities to support further broadband deployment without any additional funding being added to it by either the government or by the local authorities.

Department for Work and Pensions

Department for Work and Pensions: Welsh Language

Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of the forms of his Department's website are available in Welsh.

Priti Patel: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 26 November 2015.The correct answer should have been:

The DWP has 40 published forms on gov.uk. Oof those which 27 are covered by the Welsh Language Act,. Of these 9 22 are currently available in Welsh and the rest will be by January 2016.

Priti Patel: The DWP has 40 published forms on gov.uk. Oof those which 27 are covered by the Welsh Language Act,. Of these 9 22 are currently available in Welsh and the rest will be by January 2016.

Employment Schemes

Richard Graham: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when he plans to publish the White Paper on supporting people with health conditions and disabilities to get into work.

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when he plans to publish the White Paper on supporting people with health conditions and disabilities to get into work.

Priti Patel: As announced in the Spending Review, the Government will publish a White Paper in 2016 that will set out reforms to improve support for people with health conditions and disabilities.

Pensioners: Government Assistance

Ian Blackford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what guidance and advice his Department provides for pensioners who exhaust their pension pots.

Justin Tomlinson: Government has created the foundation for saving via automatic enrolment and the State Pension reforms. The new State pension is there to provide a good basic level of income in retirement. The Government is encouraging saving and allowing people to access their pensions in a way that suits them.DWP is committed to providing security for working people at every stage of their lives, and that includes giving people the chance to plan for a financially secure retirement.The Government recognises that people need support which is why it set up Pension wise. Pension Wise is the Government's free, impartial retirement guidance service which helps members by giving guidance on different options available to them. Part of the Pension wise guidance is stressing the need to consider the need for lifetime income to minimise the risk of running out. This service is not intended to replicate or replace the need for professional financial advice which some people should take.People can also turn to Money Advisory Service (MAS) and Citizens Advice Bureau for support if they are struggling with debt and need help to manage their finances.

Pensioners: Housing

Ian Blackford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential contribution of housing wealth to supporting the income of pensioners.

Ian Blackford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions his Department has had with the equity release industry on the potential contribution of equity release to supporting the income of pensioners.

Justin Tomlinson: The Government has created the foundation for saving for retirement via automatic enrolment and the State Pension reforms and given individuals the freedom to use their own savings and access other sources of income or capital in the way that best suits their needs. The latest figures from the Office for National Statistics indicate that around 80% of pensioners hold some form of housing equity. However, people who might choose to access potential sources of income, such as equity release or flexible pension products, will need to give careful consideration to whether it best suits their needs and how it could affect their income and entitlement to welfare, both now and in the future.That is why the government set up Pension Wise to provide information and guidance on how people can access their pension saving flexibly. Information is widely available in terms of how income and capital are treated in the means-tested benefits. Officials have held discussions with the equity release industry in May 2014 and February 2015 to explain the interactions between equity release and means tested benefits.

Housing Benefit

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number of (a) social and (b) affordable housing tenants in receipt of housing benefit who have paid rents in excess of local housing allowance rates in each of the last six years.

Justin Tomlinson: The information requested can only be provided at a disproportionate cost.

Housing Benefit

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the effect of restricting housing benefit entitlement for single social tenants under the age of 35 to the Shared Accommodation Rate of the relevant Local Housing Allowance on (a) levels of homelessness and (b) the availability of social housing for that age group.

Justin Tomlinson: The introduction of Local Housing Allowance limits to housing benefit and Universal Credit houisng element awards will only apply from April 2018, where new tenancies have been taken out or renewed after April 2016.Tenants who take on a new tenancy or renew a tenancy will have the opportunity to consider whether they can afford to take on the property before committing to it. Because of the element of choice it is not possible to accurately estimate whether there will be any impact upon homelessness or the availability of social housing.

Housing Benefit

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the effect of capping housing benefit for social tenants at the relevant Local Housing Allowance rate on social housing supply.

Justin Tomlinson: Capping high social sector rents at the relevant Local Housing Allowance rate does not come into effect until April 2018 and then only where a new tenancy is taken out or a tenancy is renewed after April 2016 and the resulting social rent charged exceeds the appropriate Local Housing Allowance rate for the size of household in the area at that timeBecause a range of factors will influence where and when a cap is applied, including behavioural responses from both claimants and landlords, it is not possible to assess the potential effect of the policy on social housing supply.

Housing Benefit

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the effect of capping housing benefit for social tenant at the relevant Local Housing Allowance rate on the incomes of the tenants affected.

Justin Tomlinson: Capping high social sector rents at the relevant Local Housing Allowance rate does not come into effect until April 2018 and then only where a new tenancy is taken out or a tenancy is renewed after April 2016 and the resulting social rent charged exceeds the appropriate Local Housing Allowance rate for the size of household in the area at that time.Because a range of factors will influence where and when a cap is applied, including behavioural responses from both claimants and landlords, it is not possible to assess the potential effect of the policy on the incomes of the tenants affected.

Housing Benefit

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number of (a) social and (b) affordable housing tenants who will be affected by planned caps on housing benefit in the social sector in (i) 2018-19, (ii) 2019-20 and (iii) 2020-21.

Justin Tomlinson: The introduction of Local Housing Allowance limits to social sector tenants in receipt of Housing Benefit or the Universal Credit houisng element will only apply from April 2018, where new tenancies have been taken out or renewed after April 2016.Tenants who take on a new tenancy or renew a tenancy will have the opportunity to consider whether they can afford to take on the property before committing to it. Because of the element of choice is it not possible to accurately estimate the number of (a) social and (b) affordable housing tenants who will be affected by this measure.

Local Housing Allowance

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number of (a) local authorities and (b) housing associations that have charged rents in excess of local housing allowance rates in each of the last six years.

Justin Tomlinson: The information requested can only be provided at a disproportionate cost.

Local Housing Allowance

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number of homes for (a) social and (b) affordable rent which are let at rents at or below the shared accommodation rate of the local housing allowance in each region in the most recent period for which figures are available.

Justin Tomlinson: The information requested can only be provided at a disproportion cost.

Housing Benefit: Dundee

Chris Law: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many adults under 21 years old in Dundee will be affected by changes to housing benefit.

Justin Tomlinson: The information requested is not available.To prevent young people slipping straight into a life on benefits, from April 2017 the Government will remove the automatic entitlement to housing support for new claims in Universal Credit from 18-21 year olds who are out of work. This will ensure young people in the benefits system face the same choices as young people who work and who may not be able to afford to leave home.We will ensure that vulnerable young people who are in need of support for their housing needs continue to receive it. Government will consider the impact in line with our legal obligations as part of that process.

Social Security Benefits: Chronic Illnesses

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of the measures proposed in clause 13 of the Welfare Reform and Work Bill on claimants with (a) Parkinson's disease and (b) other incurable and degenerative conditions.

Priti Patel: The Government set out its assessment of the impacts of the policies in Bill on 20th July.Ministers have considered impacts with regard to all relevant legal obligations when formulating the welfare policies announced in the Bill.

Employment Schemes: Disability

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much his Department has spent on the Work Choice programme to date; and what the estimated total cost of that programme over its lifetime is.

Priti Patel: Departmental expenditure on Work Choice contracts to date is £451million. This covers the period from the start of the programme in Financial Year 2010-11 to November 2015.

Jobseeker's Allowance: Mental Illness

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department plans to issue guidance on how its proposed extension of jobseeker's allowance conditionality will apply to claimants with mental illness.

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential effect on claimants with mental illness of his proposals to extend jobseeker's allowance conditionality.

Priti Patel: We have made no proposals to extend Jobseekers Allowance conditionality.

Housing Benefit: Overseas Workers

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the effect of the proposed reduction in the maximum length of time for which housing benefit is payable for tenants travelling overseas on claimants required by their employers to work overseas for extended periods; and what exemptions he plans to put in place to protect claimants in such circumstances.

Justin Tomlinson: We are aligning treatment of temporary absences from Great Britain in housing benefit with the current treatment in Universal Credit.We plan to make a number of easements for people in work, including for members of the armed forces, mariners and continental shelf workers.

Housing Benefit

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015, what exemptions he plans to put in place to protect vulnerable households from restrictions to housing benefit in the social sector.

Justin Tomlinson: The existing exemptions that already apply to private rented sector tenants will be carefully considered prior to implementing the Local Housing Allowance cap for tenants living in the social rented sector.It should be noted that the policy applies from April 2018, but only where new tenancies have been taken out or renewed after April 2016.The Discretionary Housing Payment scheme will be available to Local Authorities to protect the vulnerable.

Employment and Support Allowance

Dr Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people receive employment and support allowance in the work-related activity group on grounds of mental or behavioural disorders.

Priti Patel: The information available is in the table below:As at May 2015Work Related Activity GroupCaseload (Thousands)Mental and Behavioural Disorders240.64Notes:The extract is as at May 2015 which is the latest data available.Source:DWP Tabulation Tool http://tabulation-tool.dwp.gov.uk/100pc/tabtool.html

Universal Credit: Disqualification

Dr Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he plans to publish statistics on sanctions imposed under the universal credit scheme during the course of its implementation.

Priti Patel: The Department published its strategy for releasing official statistics on Universal Credit in September 2013. As outlined in the strategy, officials are quality assuring data for Universal Credit and formulating a definitive list of what statistics will be provided in the future.These statistics will be published in accordance with the relevant protocols in the Code of Practice for Official Statistics.

Social Security Benefits: Disqualification

Dr Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of (a) jobseeker's allowance and (b) employment and support allowance claims were subject to a sanction (i) pre-challenge and (ii) post-challenge in 2013-14.

Priti Patel: The information requested is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.The latest Jobseeker’s Allowance and Employment and Support Allowance sanctions statistics can be found at:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/jobseekers-allowance-sanctions

Employment Services: European Social Fund

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the timetable is for the commissioning of new employment support services to be funded by the European Social Fund Operational Programme 2014 to 2020.

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, which third party providers of employment support services have made successful applications for funding from the European Social Fund Operational Programme 2014 to 2020.

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans the Government has to evaluate the performance of employment support schemes delivered by third party providers who are funded by the European Social Fund Operational Programme 2014 to 2020.

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what total amount was allocated within the European Social Fund Operational Programme 2014-2020 for employment support schemes in the UK.

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans he has to commission a replacement scheme for the European Social Fund (ESF) Support for Families with Multiple Problems programme under the ESF Operational Programme 2014-2020.

Priti Patel: The 2014-20 European Social Fund (ESF) programme in England opened for business in March 2015 when applications were invited across the country. We have approved a series of large applications from national organisations (DWP, the Skills Funding Agency, the National Offender Management Service, and the Big Lottery Fund) which will be appointing providers to deliver priorities identified locally; and we are in the final stages of assessing applications from smaller organisations worth approximately £180m of ESF. Details of successful applicants will be published on gov.uk.We are required to produce a detailed evaluation strategy, and a draft is currently being discussed with the European Commission.The funding breakdown between the different themes is set out in the Operational Programme which can be found here. Responsibility for ESF is devolved, and therefore Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and Gibraltar have produced separate Operational Programmes.For the 2014-2020 period, the Government has adopted a more localised approach to the European Structural and Investment Funds including the European Social Fund (ESF) in England, in order to support local growth. Partners in all 39 Local Enterprise Partnership areas have produced strategies identifying their local priorities. Some areas have identified troubled families as a priority group, but there will be no national ESF programme for this group.

Housing Benefit

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will expand the Targeted Affordability Fund to assist with changes to housing benefit in the social sector announced in the Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015.

Justin Tomlinson: The Targeted Affordability Funding will be based on recycling around 30 per cent of the savings from the measure to freeze LHA rates, which was announced in the Summer Budget. The funding will be available from 2017/18 onwards and will be used to support areas where higher rent increases are causing a shortage of affordable accommodation. The amounts of funding which will be available each year and the plans for how we will distribute it, will be announced in due course.

Social Security Benefits: Disqualification

Dr Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if his Department will automatically exempt people (a) who are homeless, (b) with mental ill health and (c) in other at-risk groups from benefit sanctions.

Priti Patel: The sanctions process encourages benefit claimants to do everything they can to find work. Evidence shows that they have a positive impact on behaviour – over 70% JSA & over 60% ESA claimants say that sanctions make it more likely they will follow the rules.Jobseekers are only asked to meet reasonable requirements, taking into account their circumstances and capability, including mental health conditions, disability housing status and caring responsibilities. These requirements are clearly explained and agreed by jobseekers with their Work Coach and set out in their Claimant Commitment.As we already have a number of flexibilities in place, we will not be automatically exempting people who are homeless, who have mental health issues, or other vulnerable groups from benefit sanctions.

Jobseeker's Allowance: Homelessness

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department has taken to monitor the application of the easement of conditionality rules under the Jobseeker's Allowance (Homeless Claimants) Amendment Regulations 2014 since those Regulations were brought into force.

Priti Patel: It is the responsibility of Jobcentre Plus managers to monitor the appropriate application of easements to Jobseeker’s Allowance conditionality. In doing so, they use an assurance framework to assess the quality of work coach interviews and Claimant Commitments to make sure they appropriately reflect individual circumstances.

Jobseeker's Allowance: Homelessness

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many times Jobcentre Plus staff applied an easement of conditionality under the Jobseeker's Allowance (Homeless Claimants) Amendment Regulations 2014 to claimants in the most recent month for which figures are available.

Priti Patel: This information is not routinely gathered, so the information requested is not available.

Carer's Allowance

Neil Coyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the effect of the judgment in the case of R v Secretary of State [2015] EWHC 3382 (Admin).

Justin Tomlinson: The Government is considering the judgment and will set out its position in due course.

Social Security Benefits: Disqualification

Dr Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of people sanctioned since 2012 have not gained employment and are no longer in receipt of the relevant benefit following the sanction period.

Dr Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people in receipt of (a) employment and support allowance and (b) job seeker's allowance have been sanctioned since 2012; and how many such claimants (i) remained on the relevant benefit, (ii) gained employment and (iii) dropped off the system following the sanction period.

Priti Patel: The information requested is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.The information that is available, on the number of sanction referrals and adverse sanction decisions, in respect of Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) and Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA), is published and available at:https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/:Guidance on how to extract the information required can be found at:https://sw.stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Getting-Started---SuperWEB2.html

Social Security Benefits: Disqualification

Neil Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many claimants were sanctioned in (a) 2015, (b) 2014, (c) 2013, (d) 2012 and (e) 2011; how many such claimants were (i) disabled and (ii) lone parents in each such year; and how many dependents such claimants had in each such year.

Priti Patel: The specific information requested, in respect of claimants who are sanctioned and have dependents and lone parents on Employment and Support Allowance, is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.The information that is available, on the number of sanction referrals and adverse sanction decisions, in respect of Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) and Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) is published and available at:https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/Guidance on how to extract the information required can be found at:https://sw.stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Getting-Started---SuperWEB2.htmlInformation about Income Support lone parents (ISLP) is available at:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/income-support-lone-parent-regime-figures-on-sanctions-and-work-focused-interviews--2

Jobseeker's Allowance: Homelessness

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department has taken since the Jobseeker's Allowance (Homeless Claimants) Amendment Regulations 2014 came into force to increase awareness of the easement of conditionality rules among Jobcentre Plus staff.

Priti Patel: All Jobcentre Plus staff have access to comprehensive and clear procedures, instructions and learning which equips them to advise customers appropriately. These products were updated to reflect the implementation of the conditionality easement for homeless claimants.   In addition, the homeless easement was communicated separately through internal staff memos and on the Department’s internal Intranet site. More recently, an internal Homelessness ‘Ask the Expert’ telephone conference was hosted for managers and staff. The event was aimed at improving services to homeless customers and covered the conditionality easement introduced in 2014.

Housing Benefit: Supported Housing

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much will be made available in additional discretionary housing payments for people in supported accommodation in each financial year from 2018-19 to 2020-21.

Justin Tomlinson: In the Autumn Statement it was announced that additional Discretionary Housing Payment funding will be made available to Local Authorities to protect the most vulnerable, including those in supported accommodation. A further £70 million will be made available across 2018-19 and 2019-20.This will be in addition to the funding for the Discretionary Housing Payment scheme that was announced in the Summer Budget where the allocation for 2018-19 to 2020-21 is as follows:2018/192019/202020/21£170m£155m£140mIt should be noted that local authorities have the discretion to set their own priorities to ensure Discretionary Housing Payments are awarded to those who most require assistance based on local circumstances.

Housing Benefit: Supported Housing

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the (a) housing benefit claimant count and (b) average weekly housing benefit award is for tenants in supported accommodation in each (i) county, (ii) region, (iii) local authority and (iv) valuation office agency area.

Justin Tomlinson: The information requested is not available.DWP and DCLG have commissioned an evidence review to provide more robust and up-to-date information relating to supported housing. The report will be published in 2016.

Children: Maintenance

Alex Chalk: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what procedures the Child Support Agency (CSA) has to ensure that it takes account of a person's assets as well as their income when calculating child maintenance payments; and if he will make it his policy to require the CSA to take into account the value of retained profit of any company controlled by the non-resident parent when calculating child maintenance payments from that parent.

Priti Patel: Across all three Child Maintenance schemes maintenance is calculated based on a person’s earned income, and does not normally include any consideration of assets.Since 1996, clients have been able to request either that the standard maintenance calculation can be ‘departed’ or ‘varied’ (depending on which Child Maintenance scheme their case is under) in certain exceptional circumstances. These include where there is income generated from assets, such as property or dividends, which would not otherwise be taken into account.Where a business retains profits for the purposes of ensuring continued existence and / or growth of the business, and provided the amounts retained are not unreasonable under UK taxation legislation, there is no provision to include these amounts in the calculation of a maintenance liability.

Severe Disability Premium

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of changes to the severe disability premium on young carers.

Justin Tomlinson: The Government has no plans to make changes to the existing Severe Disability Premium which is available in means-tested benefits such as Income Support. It is not a qualifying condition for an award of Carer’s Allowance that the person being cared for is entitled to the Severe Disability Premium. Neither Carer’s Allowance nor Universal Credit (which also contains an additional amount for carers) are available to claimants aged under 16.

Employment and Support Allowance

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the effect of changes to the number of people in the work-related activity group on people with restrictive medical conditions; and what alternative measures he plans to put in place to assist such people.

Priti Patel: The Government set out its assessment of the impacts of the policies in Bill on 20th July and Ministers have considered impacts with regard to all relevant legal obligations when formulating the welfare policies announced in the Bill.This change includes new funding for additional practical support for claimants with limited capability for work from April 2017, when the removal of the work-related activity component will come into effect, rising from £60m in 2017/18 to £100m a year in 2020/21.

Housing Benefit

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether the application of local housing allowance rates for housing benefit paid in the social sector will take into account core rent and housing service charge elements.

Justin Tomlinson: The introduction of Local Housing Allowance limits to social sector tenants in receipt of Housing Benefit or the housing element of Universal Credit will only apply from April 2018 where new tenancies have been taken out or renewed after April 2016.This reform will prevent social sector tenants from receiving more than if renting privately and the Department will set out the exact policy design in due course.

Employment and Support Allowance

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the finding of the report, Halving the Gap, published by Mencap in December 2015, that the proposed change in employment and support allowance to claimants in the work-related activity group is likely to move those claimants further away from the labour market rather than closer.

Priti Patel: The Government set out its assessment of the impacts of the policies in Bill on 20th July and we will review all reports which relate to the Welfare Reform and Work Bill.

Ministry of Defence

Navy

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Royal Naval officers and ratings at each rank were employed by the Royal Navy on 31 July 2015.

Mark Lancaster: The information requested for the Naval Service, as at 1 August 2015, is provided in the tables below. This is also available in the Royal Navy and Royal Marines Monthly Personnel Situation Report for August 2015, published on the GOV.UK website at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/458873/20150907_RN_RM_Situation_Report_rounded_August2015.pdfRegular Royal Navy and Royal Marines Officer Strength by Paid RankRear Admiral/Major General and AboveCommodore/ BrigadierCaptain RN/ ColonelCommander/Lieutenant ColonelLieutenant Commander/MajorLieutenant/ Captain RMSub- Lieutenant/ Lieutenant/ 2nd LieutenantOfficer Designate40802901,0602,0002,510750170Regular Royal Navy and Royal Marines Ratings Strength by Paid RankWarrant Officer 1Warrant Officer 2Chief Petty Officer/Colour SergeantPetty Officer/ SergeantLeading Rate/ CorporalLance CorporalAble Rate/ Marine9104603,0403,6405,58072011,970Note:All totals are rounded in accordance with the Defence Statistics rounding policy; therefore totals may not equal the sum of their parts. All numbers are rounded to the nearest 10 with numbers ending in 5 rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to avoid bias. Figures include Trained, Untrained and Full Time Reserves Service personnel.

Navy: Deployment

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many days on average each class of Royal Naval officer and rating was at sea in each year between 2005 and 2014.

Mark Lancaster: Time spent at sea can vary depending on the tasking of the vessel.The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Syria: Military Intervention

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will publish on his Department's website (a) corroborated information on deaths of (i) ISIS fighters and (ii) civilians as a result of airstrikes on Syrian locations and (b) other information in a daily battle assessment for each day from 2 December 2015.

Penny Mordaunt: Information on RAF airstrikes in Iraq and Syria, and their outcome, is already published on the gov.uk website and is regularly updated. We know of no civilian casualties caused by RAF airstrikes against Daesh in Iraq or Syria.

Ministry of Defence: Assets

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department plans to retain or to return to the Consolidated Fund receipts from the sale of land and property assets over the Spending Review period.

Mark Lancaster: The Ministry of Defence plans to retain all receipts from the sale of land and property assets.

Military Bases: Religious Buildings

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many military chapels there are in England and Wales; and how many such chapels are registered to conduct (a) same-sex and (b) other marriages.

Penny Mordaunt: Holding answer received on 10 December 2015



There are 190 military chapels in England and Wales registered for marriages under the rites of Church of England or otherwise, as described under sections 69 and 70 of the 1949 Marriage Act.The Ministry of Defence allows same-sex marriages in military chapels, but none of the Sending Churches using the chapels currently allows same-sex marriages to be conducted there. I have asked the Chaplaincies of the three Services to advise me on how Parliament's sanction of same sex-marriages may be fully implemented.

Syria: Military Intervention

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what representations he has received from his French, American and German counterparts on Britain's decision to extend airstrikes to Syria.

Penny Mordaunt: My French, American and German counterparts have all welcomed the role we are now playing in Syria.

Ministry of Defence: Buildings

Steven Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to paragraph 4.62 in the Strategic Defence and Security Review, published on 23 November 2015, what areas his Department plans to sell to reduce the size of the built estate by 30 per cent; and by what process those areas were chosen.

Mark Lancaster: The Defence Footprint Strategy examines the Defence Estate across the UK, with the aim of providing a smaller more sustainable estate in support of military capabilities. Work to identify the sites which may be released to enable the reduction of the estate through the Footprint Strategy will conclude in 2016, contributing to the Government's commitment to release public sector land for house building during this Parliament.

Veterans: Military Decorations

Melanie Onn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the annual cost is of the veterans badge.

Mark Lancaster: The annual cost of Armed Forces Veterans' Badges from November 2014 to October 2015 was £44,655.

Maritime Patrol Aircraft

Douglas Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to maintain Maritime Patrol Aircraft capabilities during the period before the first Poseidon P-8 is planned to enter service in 2019-20.

Mr Philip Dunne: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 3 December 2015 to Question number 17839 from the hon. Member for Garston and Halewood (Maria Eagle).



Military Aircraft
(Word Document, 14.51 KB)

Military Aircraft: Safety Measures

Douglas Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Tornado and Typhoon jets operating in the Iraq and Syria region are fitted with the TCASS II Collision Warning System.

Mr Philip Dunne: Six Tornado aircraft operating over Syria and Iraq are fitted with the Honeywell Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) II, a system designed to de-conflict aircraft operating in civil airspace. This is the first system to be deployed in a combat jet fleet globally, although TCAS is not used in operational theatres for security reasons.

Veterans: Military Decorations

Melanie Onn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what plans he has to introduce a National Defence Medal for all veterans.

Melanie Onn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the potential annual cost of awarding a National Defence Medal to all veterans.

Mark Lancaster: The Committee on the Grant of Honours, Decorations and Medals (HD Committee) examined the proposals to institute a National Defence Medal (NDM) as part of the independent Military Medals Review in July 2014. The Committee was not persuaded that a strong enough case could be made at the time. Therefore the Department has no current plans to introduce a NDM for veterans.At the conclusion of Sir John Holmes review, a series of papers were placed in the Library of the House (http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/business-papers/commons/deposited-papers/?fd=2014-07-28&td=2014-07-29#toggle-1168). One of these, ‘Revised National Defence Medal – Updated’, contains an estimate of the potential cost of awarding a NDM to all veterans who have completed four years of regular or Reserve Service or completed national service (back to 9 September 1945). Based on an approximate figure of seven million recipients the cost was estimated to be £475 million.

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Douglas Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many strikes were made using the Brimstone missile during Operation HERRICK.

Penny Mordaunt: 68 Brimstone missile weapon releases occurred during Operation HERRICK.A detailed statistical breakdown by year is contained in Table four of the publication: Op HERRICK (Afghanistan) Aircraft Statistics dated 29 October 2015 available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/operation-herrick-afghanistan-aircraft-statistics

Trident Submarines

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 30 November 2015 to Question 17622, if he will identify separately the marginal costs associated with maintaining the Vanguard submarines in service for five years longer then envisaged.

Mr Philip Dunne: As announced in Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR) 2010 we can extend the life of the existing Vanguard class submarines into the early 2030s. Cost estimates for supporting the ballistic missile submarines during the transition from Vanguard to Successor are not materially affected by minor changes to scheduled dates.

Armed Forces: Education

Douglas Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what guidance his Department provides to service personnel on choosing state and private schools for their children's education.

Mark Lancaster: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) Children's Education Advisory Service (CEAS) provides information, advice and support to Service parents on all aspects of the education of their children. CEAS advice is free and impartial, and covers a range of issues including mainstream state schools and special state maintained schools, state boarding schools, the MOD's Queen Victoria School Dunblane, and independent schools both day and boarding. CEAS also advise on MOD educational allowances, and the strict eligibility criteria that must be met.CEAS offer tailored support for Service parents who experience difficulty in obtaining the state school of their choice and where necessary support them through the appeal process. As well as help-lines and an email enquiry service, CEAS provide four dedicated peripatetic Parent Support Officers who are educational professionals and cover all locations within the United Kingdom.The guidance provided by the MOD was covered in some detail during a House of Commons Defence Committee Inquiry in 2013, and more detail is available in the Fourth Report of Session 2013-14: The Armed Forces Covenant in Action? Part 3: Educating the Children of Service Personnel, which is available in the Library of the House and at the following link:http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201314/cmselect/cmdfence/586/58602.htm

Ministry of Defence: Security

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessments he has made of the future security needs of Ministry of Defence (MoD) establishments in the UK; whether responsibility for guarding any MoD sites, assets and infrastructure will be transferred from the MoD Police to the Armed Forces in the next five years; how and when such changes might be decided upon and implemented; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Lancaster: The Ministry of Defence has several organisations that provide policing and guarding across the defence estate. Our policy is to deploy the Ministry of Defence Police (MDP) at those sites where constabulary powers are needed. We also use Regular Service Personnel or the specialist Military Provost Guard Service who have the ability to be armed where required.As part of the 2015 Strategic Defence and Security Review, we are reviewing how we provide our policing and guarding at some sites.

Military Bases

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 1 December 2015 to Question 17678, how many (a) military and (b) civil servant personnel of each rank and grade are employed at (i) MoD Grantown-on-Spey, (b) MoD Llanwrst, (c) MoD Fairbourne and (d) MoD Crickhowell; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Lancaster: Information on the rank and grade of personnel Stationed at the listed locations as at 1 October for each year is provided in the tables below. The data has been rounded in accordance with data protection principles, where ~ denotes less than 5.NATO Rank200720082009201020112012201320142015LlanrwstOR-6~~~10101010100OR-4000~555~0FairbourneOF-3~~~~~~~~~OF-2~~~~~~~00OR-7~~~~~~~~~OR-655~~~~~~~OR-410101515101510105CrickhowellOF-400000000~OF-3~~~~~~~~~OF-2~~~~~~~~~OF-1~000~0000OR-800~000000OR-7~~~~~~~~~OR-6~~~~~~~~~OR-455~510105105OR-3~~5105~000OR-2~510~~~~00Grantown-on-SpeyOF-3000~~0~0~OF-200000~000OR-90000~~~~~OR-7000000~~~OR-6000~~551010OR-4000~~~~~5Grade Levels200720082009201020112012201320142015LlanrwstBand D~~~~~~~~~Band E55555~~~~Industrial5~5~5~~~~FairbourneBand E10105~~~~~~Industrial10105101010~~~CrickhowellBand C0~000000~Band D555555555Band E510510~~~~~Industrial~~~~~~~~~Grantown-on-SpeyBand E~~~~~~~~~Industrial~5~5~~~~~

Armed Forces: Mental Health Services

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what support his Department is providing to fund mental health services for military personnel on active military duty; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Lancaster: The Ministry of Defence is absolutely committed to looking after the mental health of our Armed Forces personnel, and through the Defence budget we fund a range of military medical staff and facilities to provide community-based healthcare in line with national best practice. This includes the ability to deploy medical staff on major operations such as those in Iraq and Afghanistan. In the UK, we have 16 permanent military Departments of Community Mental Health, which are located to be convenient for major centres of military population, and which support the provision of healthcare that is available through GPs in Service primary care facilities. In-patient care, when necessary, is provided in dedicated psychiatric units through a central contract with an external provider.

Armed Forces: Firearms

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made the effectiveness and reliability of small arms equipment issued as standard across the armed forces; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Philip Dunne: The effectiveness of small arms is regularly reviewed, with current performance routinely compared to other equipment used by military peers and developed by industry. The requirement for small arms to achieve defined levels of reliability is set prior to procurement and tested prior to purchase. Equipment already in service is continually reviewed, with any emerging issues investigated to resolution.

Home Office

Refugees

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what work her Department is undertaking with agencies outside the UN High Commissioner for Refugees system in order to assist and resettle the most vulnerable refugees.

Richard Harrington: The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is the internationally recognised and mandated agency for dealing with refugees. We therefore work exclusively with the UNHCR in identifying which vulnerable refugees are selected for resettlement in the UK, based on the UNHCR’s vulnerability criteria. We also work very closely with other bodies to deliver services on the ground to resettle Syrians through this scheme. These include the International Organisation for Migration, local authorities and national and regional NGOs.

Interdepartmental Ministerial
Group on Modern Slavery

Mark Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, on how many occasions the Inter-Departmental Ministerial Group on Modern Slavery met in (a) 2013, (b) 2014 and (c) 2015; who attended each such meeting; and in what ways that group is fulfilling the role of the national rapporteur.

Karen Bradley: The Inter-Departmental Ministerial Group (IDMG) on Modern Slavery met twice in each of the years 2013, 2014 and 2015.In addition to these formal meetings of the IDMG group, on 17 October 2014 the Prime Minister, The Rt Hon David Cameron MP, also chaired a roundtable IDMG event as part of a programme of activity to mark the 2014 anti-slavery day.This group fulfils the role of the UK’s national rapporteur equivalent mechanism, as set out in Article 19 of the EU directive on preventing and combating trafficking in human beings, by carrying out assessments of trends in trafficking, gathering statistics, measuring the results of anti-trafficking actions, and regularly reporting on the above.IDMG reports are available on gov.uk: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/modern-slavery-inter-departmental-ministerial-group-publications. The most recent report was published on 21 October 2015.Each report includes a list of all current members of the IDMG. Ministers from relevant Government departments are invited to attend meetings. Where they are unable to attend, they are asked to delegate attendance to senior officials.

Human Trafficking: Victim Support Schemes

Mark Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average unit cost of caring for a victim of human trafficking in a government-funded shelter is; and if she will make a statement.

Karen Bradley: The Government funds a range of support services through a contract with The Salvation Army. It is not possible to provide an average unit cost because the needs of potential victims of trafficking are varied, as is the length of stay in accommodation, where provided.

Vetting: Standards

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of Disclosure and Barring Service checks for (a) standard and (b) enhanced exceeded the eight week target for issuing in the last 12 months.

Karen Bradley: Between 1 November 2014 and 30 October 2015, the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) issued over 4.19 million certificates. Of these, 6 per cent of enhanced and 0.1 per cent of standard certificates were issued after eight weeks.

Asylum: Bank Services

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions her Department has had with HM Treasury on whether people resettled in the UK under the vulnerable persons programme will be able to access banking services.

Richard Harrington: Refugees who are resettled under the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme are granted a five year humanitarian protection visa and can therefore access banking services in the UK.

Vetting

Meg Hillier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many disclosure and barring applications have been sent to the Metropolitan Police in each year of the last five years; and what the average time taken by the Metropolitan Police to process checks for Disclosure and Barring Service applications was in each of those years.

Karen Bradley: Holding answer received on 10 December 2015



The number of applications that the Disclosure and Barring Service sent to the Metropolitan Police in each of the last five years is set out in the follwoing table, together with the Metropolitan Police’s average processing time for each of those years.Time PeriodVolume Despatched Turnaround Time (Days)November 2010 to October 2011336,35868.68November 2011 to October 2012207,57133.77November 2012 to October 2013191,27326.95November 2013 to October 2014194,98440.81November 2014 to October 2015192,95065.44

Refugees: Syria

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what commitments the UK has made to supporting refugees from Syria who are in Europe.

James Brokenshire: Each EU Member State is responsible for the welfare of asylum applicants and refugees on its territory. The UK government bears no responsibility for supporting asylum seekers or refugees who are on the territory of another Member State. However, the Government has played a leading role in building capacity in Member States under particular migration pressure, both bi-laterally and through EU agencies such as the European Asylum Support Office (EASO). The UK has contributed over 1,000 expert days to EASO led support missions to countries such as Greece and Italy, more than any other Member State.

Refugees: Syria

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 7 December 2015 to Question 18565, what the components are of the 12 month support package provided to resettled Syrian refugees to assist with their integration.

Richard Harrington: The Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme prioritises those who cannot be supported effectively in the region, and the 12 month support package which refugees are offered is therefore tailored according to their individual needs. The main components are accommodation; cultural integration, including English Language tuition; and addressing any medical and social care needs.

Asylum: Families

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 3 December 2015 to Question 18222, if her Department will put procedures in place to ensure that family members who are not resettled together when they arrive in the UK under the vulnerable persons programme are able to maintain contact with each other.

Richard Harrington: The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) identifies refugees for potential resettlement under the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement scheme using their vulnerability criteria, and submits cases for Home Office consideration. The UNHCR links family groups so we can seek to allocate them to the same local authority. We also try and place them close to any family members already residing in the UK.

Members: Correspondence

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she expects to respond to my email of 20 October 2015 on Mr M Khan.

Karen Bradley: The Home Office is unable to provide an answer as it has been unable to identify the nature of the query or the individual concerned from the information provided in the question.

Asylum: Pakistan

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people from Pakistan applied for asylum under the detained fast-track procedure for reasons of religious persecution and discrimination in each of the last three years.

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the reasons in the discrepancy between the proportion of granted asylum claims which are made to people from Pakistan and the proportion of applicants under the detained fast-track procedure who are from that country.

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people from Pakistan applied for asylum and requested certification under section (a) 94(1) and (b) 94(2) of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 in each of the last three years.

James Brokenshire: The basis of an individual’s asylum claim is not recorded on Home Office systems. It is not therefore possible to differentiate Pakistani applicants claiming for reasons of religious persecution and discrimination from Pakistani applicants claiming for one or more other reasons in the Detained Fast Track (DFT) or the non-detained process.Certification under section 94 of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 is not requested by an applicant. It is applied by the Secretary of State in circumstances where the applicant’s claim is refused and considered to be so lacking in merit as to be clearly unfounded.The number of initial certified refusals for Pakistan main asylum applicants, from year ending September 2013 to year ending September 2015, was 604. The Home Office publishes data on asylum applications and decisions on a quarterly and annual basis. The information supplied on certified refusals is based on initial decisions which do not necessarily relate to applications made in the same period.No assessment has been made of any difference that might exist between grant rates in respect of Pakistani applicants in the DFT process when it operated, and cases entering the non-detained process at the same time. However, as the DFT process avoided claims involving particular complexity and/or vulnerability, and prioritised cases which appeared to be late or opportunistic, it is to be expected that the DFT would have fewer grants than the non-detained process.

Visas: Domestic Service

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to publish her Department's report on tied visas for domestic servants.

James Brokenshire: James Ewins’s report on visas for overseas domestic workers has been submitted to the Home Office and will be published shortly.

Asylum: Syria

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the cost to the public purse of the Syrian Vulnerable Person Relocation scheme in each year until 2020.

Richard Harrington: The first 12 months of each refugee’s resettlement costs under the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement (VPR) Scheme will be funded using Official Development Assistance, meaning over £460 million of the overseas aid budget will be used by 2019-20. At the Spending Review the Government committed £129 million to assist with local authority costs over years 2-5 of the scheme.

Upper Tribunal: Appeals

Mr Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to implement Schedule 23 of the Crime and Courts Act 2013.

Mr John Hayes: Schedule 23 of the Crime and Courts Act 2013 sets out the process for making an Order under Section 2 of that Act. Section 2 provides that the Secretary of State may make provisions about National Crime Agency Counter-Terrorism functions. There are no immediate plans to use Schedule 23 of the Crime and Courts Act 2013.Although counter-terrorism policing already has effective national structures, we will in due course carry out a review to look at how we might enhance our capabilities further.

Police Stations: Essex

Mr Douglas Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make representations to the Essex Police and Crime Commissioner to (a) extend the consultation period for closures of police stations in Essex and (b) ensure frontline policing is not reduced following proposed police station closures.

Mike Penning: Decisions about the most effective use of available resources, including numbers of police stations and deployment of frontline resources, are rightly a matter for individual Police and Crime Commissioners and Chief Constables, tailored to the needs of the local community. Data published by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary shows that the proportion of frontline roles in Essex Police increased from 88% to 91% between March 2010 and 2015.

Visas: Married People

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 7 December 2015 to Question 17661, if she will recompense spousal visa applicants using the premium service but not receiving a determination on the day of application; and if she will make a statement.

James Brokenshire: All applicants who choose to use the premium service are offered a refund of the premium service fee if their applications cannot be determined due to unforeseen operational reasons on the day. However, if applicants do not arrive with the correct documentation and further checks are required that cannot be concluded on the day, then no recompense will be offered for the decision not being concluded on the day of the appointment.

Visas: Married People

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 7 December 2015 to Question 17662, if she will recompense postal applicants for a spousal visa whose application is not determined within eight weeks; and if she will make a statement.

James Brokenshire: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Fraud: Criminal Investigation

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, on what basis Action Fraud determines which reported frauds to pursue for investigation; and whether the amount defrauded influences such decisions.

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what Action Fraud's budget has been in each year of its existence; how many cases it has pursued in each such year; and what proportion of such cases involved cybercrime.

Mike Penning: Action Fraud is the national reporting point for fraud and also cyber crime. Crime reports received by Action Fraud are considered by the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB), both of which are operated by the City of London Police. Neither Action Fraud nor the NFIB are investigatory agencies. Crime reports are evaluated to assess the information available which could assist an investigation, and to identify links between seemingly unconnected incidents. Where there is enough evidence available and a viable lead, actionable intelligence packages are created by the NFIB and are sent to the appropriate police force to consider whether enforcement activity should take place. All crime reports are assessed against a number of variables, which may alter according to demand. It would be improper to comment on the procedure on which these decisions are made in the public domain.Action Fraud was rolled out to all police forces in April 2013; the data below includes crime reports and disseminations in England and Wales only. For the 12 months to 31 March 2015, Action Fraud received 230,399 reports of crime. Of these, 14,509 were cyber dependent crimes, namely, crimes which can only be committed using computers, computer networks or other forms of information communication technology – for example, hacking or malware offences. These crimes fall under the Computer Misuse Act 1990. For this period, the NFIB disseminated a total of 61,682 crimes to Forces and partner agencies to consider investigation. For the period April 2013 – March 2014 Action Fraud received 211,221 crime reports and of these, 21,686 were cyber dependent. For this period, the NFIB disseminated a total of 39,138 crimes to Forces and partner agencies to consider investigation.Historically the Action Fraud capability came into life in 2009 and was funded by the National Fraud Authority (NFA), which has since been closed, a proportion of the NFA’s total budget was used to fund the Action Fraud Capability and is as follows:• 2009/10 £5.7 million including a £1.4 million uplift to set up the service• 2010/11 £4.9 million• 2011/12 £6.68 million• 2012/13 £9.4 millionSince the closure of the NFA in March 2014 Action Fraud and the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau have been funded by Home Office funding, Cabinet Office funding for Cyber Security and funding from the City of London Police core grant, and is as follows:• 2013/14 £11.11 million• 2014/15 £10.62 million• 2015/16 £11.03 million

Counter-terrorism: Education

Stella Creasy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if her Department will publish all guidance it has issued to schools and colleges for the implementation of PREVENT strategy activities for all age groups.

Mr John Hayes: The Home Office published guidance on the Prevent statutory duty for specified authorities, including schools, in March 2015. In September 2015, the Home Office published Prevent duty guidance specifically for colleges and universities. The Department for Education issued advice for schools and childcare providers relating to the Prevent duty, which was published in July 2015. All of this guidance and advice is publicly available at the following website links:• Prevent duty guidance: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/prevent-duty-guidance• Department for Education advice for schools and childcare providers on the Prevent duty: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/439598/prevent-duty-departmental-advice-v6.pdf

Asylum: Applications

Alison Thewliss: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will set up a dedicated correspondence team in her Department to liaise with applicants solicitors on the processing of asylum claims.

James Brokenshire: Asylum Operations has existing processes that ensure claimants and legal representatives have contact details should they wish to discuss case progression. In addition, all claimants and representatives are kept informed should an initial decision on their asylum claim be delayed, with this correspondence outlining the reason for delay and providing an approximate timescale as to when a decision can be expected.

Department for International Development

Central African Republic: Armed Conflict

Mike Kane: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking (a) in the short term to provide humanitarian relief to displaced people in Bangui in the Central African Republic and (b) to secure peace in that city.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Central African Republic (CAR) is facing a severe and protracted crisis that has displaced more than a million people since 2012. Despite the deployment of 12,000 peace-keepers, the country remains marred by sectarian tension, criminal violence, arms proliferation and armed groups.In September the UK approved a £7 million uplift in our assistance to CAR and CAR refugees to address rising needs and aid gaps, bringing UK humanitarian funding to £25 million in 2015 and £58 million since 2013. This makes the UK the third largest humanitarian donor to CAR after the US and the EU in 2015. UK funding is enabling partners including the International Committee of the Red-Cross and the Common Humanitarian Fund to provide humanitarian assistance to people in need in Bangui and the rest of the country.The UK is also working with and through international organisations to ensure an effective international response to the security crisis in CAR.The UN is a key partner in CAR.The UK contributes to the UN peacekeeping mission (a projected £33.2m this year in assessed contributions).

Developing Countries: Energy

Mike Kane: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will discuss with her ministerial colleagues in other departments (a) reducing UK support for fossil fuels overseas and (b) ensuring that support for energy in developing countries is directed towards low-carbon technologies.

Mr Nick Hurd: My Department works closely with other government departments on UK energy policy overseas, including the Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC), the Treasury, and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. The UK Government has committed to end public funding for coal fired power plants, , except in rare circumstances, in the world’s poorest countries. This policy has been agreed with DECC and was announced at the Warsaw Climate Change conference in 2013.DFID will continue to support international initiatives to promote cleaner energy sources and other low carbon technologies. For example, the Energy Africa campaign will accelerate the expansion of the household solar market in Africa, helping to bring universal energy access to the continent. The International Climate Fund (ICF) managed by DECC and DFID also actively supports low-carbon technologies, and monitors this through Key Performance Indicators. The UK reports publicly on achievements through the ICF (see https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/463954/ICF_Results_Note_Final.pdf).

Occupied Territories: Water Supply

Mike Kane: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if her Department will take steps to improve access to water in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

Mr Desmond Swayne: UK officials regularly discuss the issue of water with Israeli counterparts. We continue to call for the full implementation of the relaxation of access restrictions for Gaza and, with robust monitoring, for the entry of essential items on the dual-use list to allow for rehabilitation of the water network. We also continue to press both parties to reconvene the Joint Water Committee to facilitate further approval of key projects that will improve Palestinian access to water.Through the UN FAO, DFID has invested up to £1.24m to help vulnerable rural farmers in Area C support their families through increased incomes from agricultural production. Improved irrigation efficiency has been achieved by rehabilitation of existing water cisterns and approximately 30km of water conveyance systems.

Montserrat

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if her Department will take steps to (a) develop a comprehensive and detailed plans for the development of Montserrat and (b) encourage young Montserratians in the UK to return to Montserrat and assist with economic growth.

Mr Desmond Swayne: DFID is working jointly with the Government of Montserrat and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to establish a joint vision for Montserrat. This includes encouraging all Montserratians, home and abroad, to participate in the future of the island.

Middle East: Refugee Camps

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, which refugee camps in (a) Turkey, (b) Jordan, (c) Iraq and (d) Lebanon have received financial and material support from her Department; and if she will make a statement.

Mr Desmond Swayne: The Department for International Development has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Middle East: Humanitarian Aid

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 7 December 2015 to Question 18564, whether further funding will be provided to countries outside Syria that are housing Syrian refugees in addition to the £1 billion committed for reconstruction inside Syria.

Mr Desmond Swayne: The UK has been at the forefront of the response to the crisis in Syria and the region. We have pledged over £1.1 billion, our largest ever response to a single humanitarian crisis. We are the second largest bilateral donor after the US. Of this total, the UK has allocated £559 million to support refugees in the region and vulnerable host communities.In line with the current UK Aid Strategy, DFID will allocate 50% of its spending to fragile and conflict-affected states and regions, including Syria and the surrounding region, over this Parliament. In addition the Government has pledged to create a £500 million Overseas Development Assistance crisis reserve to allow still greater flexibility to respond to emerging crises such as the displacement of Syrian refugees.

West Africa: Ebola

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assistance the Government is providing to countries in West Africa to reduce the chances of Ebola returning to areas from which it has been eradicated.

Mr Nick Hurd: We are working closely with the Government of Sierra Leone, the World Health Organisation and other partners to reduce the risk of future outbreaks and prevent them from growing into epidemics.The UK has announced a two-year £240 million package of support to Sierra Leone’s long term recovery, which includes boosting capability to respond to future Ebola outbreaks and other emergencies. A key part of this joint strategy with the Government of Sierra Leone is the strengthening of health systems. Another component will boost capacity at district levels, empower youth and communities and support women and girls.. DFID will also support Liberia’s Health Pooled fund with £6 million to help ensure that its health system is resilient to future shocks.Beyond Sierra Leone and Liberia, DFID’s Regional Preparedness Programme prevents the transmission and spread of Ebola in at-risk countries in West Africa, focusing on prevention of a fourth country outbreakand strengthening national capacities to contain disease outbreaks.At the global level, the UK is supporting urgent reform of the World Health Organisation to ensure that it will respond effectively to future health emergencies and is also supporting their new Contingency Fund for Emergencies. At the Spending Review the Government announced the new Ross Fund to support the global fight against infectious diseases including Malaria and Ebola, which will be jointly administered with the Department of Health.

Syria: Armed Conflict

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, which charities her Department has funded to assist people affected by the Syria crisis since 2012.

Mr Desmond Swayne: The UK has been at the forefront of the response to the crisis in Syria and the region. We have pledged over £1.1 billion, our largest ever response to a single humanitarian crisis.As part of the our response to the Syria Crisis, the UK is supporting a range of implementing partners working in Syria and neighbouring countries, including United Nations agencies, international Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs), the Red Cross and other international organisations. NGO partners include CARE International, the Danish Refugee Council, Handicap International, the International Rescue Committee, Islamic Relief, Mercy Corps, the Norwegian Refugee Council, Oxfam, Save the Children and World Vision. Due to security reasons, some of our International NGO partners working in Syria have requested to remain undisclosed.

HM Treasury

BBC World Service: Expenditure

Patrick Grady: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether any Government spending on the BBC World Service is recorded as Overseas Development Assistance.

Greg Hands: We have committed to increase funding for the BBC World Service to £34 million in 2016/17 and £85 million a year up to 2019-20. As a provider of accurate, impartial and independent news the BBC World Service helps to strengthen democratic accountability and governance, meaning that a significant portion of the funding provided can be classified as Official Development Assistance (ODA). ODA is subject to approval via the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) Development Assistance Committee (DAC), which oversees international ODA classification. We will work with the BBC and DAC to make the case for classifying up to £28m of the £34m in 2016/17 as ODA, and up to £70m per year in three remaining years of programme as ODA spend.

Tax Evasion

Seema Malhotra: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the Autumn Statement of 25 November 2015, Official Report, column 1361, what the evidential basis is for the statement that an investment of £800 million to fight tax evasion will return almost 10 times that amount in additional tax.

Mr David Gauke: Spending Review 2015 confirmed the additional £800m investment in HMRC, announced at Summer Budget, to tackle evasion and non-compliance, which will deliver an extra £7.2bn over the next five years – a return in tax revenue of almost 10 times the additional funding. The individual measures that the Government has provided funding for and the revenue they raise is set out on page 73 of the Summer Budget 2015 document. The assumptions and methodologies underlying all of the costings are set out in the policy costings document published at Summer Budget 2015. Both of these documents are available on www.gov.uk.

Second Homes: Stamp Duty Land Tax

Dr Tania Mathias: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the purchase of buy-to-let property by a person whose current residence derives only from their job will be deemed as a second home for tax purposes under the new Rules on Stamp Duty coming into force in April 2016.

Mr David Gauke: The new higher rates of Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) will apply to the purchase of additional residential properties and will come into force on 1 April 2016. Work-related accommodation which is provided and owned by an employer does not count when considering whether an individual is purchasing an additional property or not. The Government will shortly consult on the policy design, including on the treatment of particularly difficult cases, to ensure the change to SDLT is implemented in a fair way.

Manufacturing Industries: Finance

Chi Onwurah: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment on the financial effect on the UK manufacturing sector of reductions to (a) capital allowances and (b) corporation tax since 2010.

Mr David Gauke: The Government recognises the importance of the manufacturing sector in the UK economy.In order to support investment across the economy, including in the manufacturing sector, since 2010, the Government has reduced the corporation tax rate from 28% to 20%, and it is due to fall to 18% in 2020. Overall the corporation tax cuts delivered since 2010 will save businesses £10 billion a year from 2016. Further cuts in the corporation tax rate in this Parliament, to 19% in 2017 and 18% in 2020, will save small and large businesses a further £6.6 billion by 2021, and will benefit 1.1 million businesses. The manufacturing sector, alongside other sectors of the economy, have benefited from the corporation tax rate changes.At Summer Budget 2015, the government announced that it would increase the permanent level of the Annual Investment Allowance to £200,000, its highest ever permanent level. The sectors with most companies benefitting include manufacturing as well as wholesale and retail, and agriculture.

Energy: Tax Allowances

Rebecca Long Bailey: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to paragraph 3.23 of the Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015, what assessment he has made of the effect of removing entitlement to social investment tax relief from community energy organisations; and what consultation he undertook on this issue.

Mr David Gauke: The effects of removing energy generation activities from the venture capital schemes, as announced in paragraph 3.23 of the Spending Review and Autumn Statement, are set out in a Tax Information and Impact Note published on 9 December 2015. This is available at:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/income-tax-exclusion-of-energy-generation-from-venture-capital-schemesIn the Summer Budget, the Government announced it was monitoring the use of the venture capital schemes for investments in community energy organisations to ensure that the support provided through the schemes delivers good value for money for the taxpayer and is not subject to misuse. Since then, the Government has become aware of significant interest in the use of community energy for low-risk tax planning purposes. It has therefore acted to ensure that the venture capital schemes remain effectively targeted at the higher risk companies they are intended to support.

Public Service: Disclosure of Information

Steve McCabe: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what legal and regulatory obligations apply to members of the public identified by banks as Politically Exposed Persons; and what information his Department holds on how such people are identified by banks.

Harriett Baldwin: At present, only foreign Politically Exposed Persons (PEPs) are subject to the Money Laundering Regulations (2007). The Fourth Anti-Money Laundering Directive, which will be transposed into national law by June 2017, requires enhanced customer due diligence (EDD) measures to also be extended to domestic PEPs. We intend to interpret the Directive in a way that continues to allow banks to apply a “risk-based approach” to both the identification and application of EDD measures. This involves treating UK PEPs on the basis of risk when undertaking due diligence measures. We intend to set out this view in our consultation on transposition of the Directive which will be published in early 2016.

Enterprise Zones

Seema Malhotra: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, on which date his Department announced the creation of each enterprise zone in (a) urban and (b) rural areas of each region; and what plans he has to create new enterprise zones in what (i) rural and (ii) urban areas.

Greg Hands: 26 new and extended Enterprise Zones were announced by the Chancellor in his Autumn Statement on 25 November, details of which are available on gov.uk. The government has provided feedback to those Local Enterprise Partnerships that were unsuccessful in their applications, and where possible, will work with them to consider how the proposals could be improved.

Apprentices: Taxation

Seema Malhotra: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to paragraph 2.10 of the Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015, if he will publish the analysis and methodology used to estimate that the proposed apprenticeship levy will raise £3 billion by 2020-21.

Greg Hands: The government has published the policy costing note for the apprenticeship levy on gov.uk. It can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/480565/SRAS2015_policy_costings_amended_page_25.pdf

Floods: Northern Ireland

Ms Margaret Ritchie: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the Barnet consequentials for Northern Ireland are of the £50 million additional funding for flood relief; and if he will make a statement.

Greg Hands: As the Chancellor announced in the House on 9 December, the government is creating a new Community Recovery Scheme to support households and businesses affected by the floods in Cumbria and Lancashire.The Barnett Formula has been applied to this funding in the normal way, and the Northern Ireland Executive will receive £1.322 million in additional funding.

Political Parties: Finance

Rebecca Long Bailey: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the Autumn Statement and Spending Review 2015, paragraph 1.309, whether any reduction is planned in (a) Cranborne money and (b) Representative money.

Greg Hands: Government proposals regarding reducing the cost of politics were published in the Spending Review 2015.

Floods: Cumbria

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he plans to offer deadline extensions for tax due by businesses affected by flooding in Cumbria.

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will introduce an instalment scheme to allow businesses in Cumbria affected by flooding to spread tax payments.

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what support his Department is offering to businesses affected by flooding in Cumbria in advance of tax payment deadlines.

Mr David Gauke: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) operates a dedicated Severe Weather helpline to offer help and advice on any tax matters to those people and businesses affected by the recent flooding. The helpline is 0800 904 7900Opening hours are Monday to Friday, 8.00 am to 8.00 pm; Saturday and Sunday, 8.00 am to 4.00 pm, excluding bank holidays.HMRC will also:consider instalment arrangements where customers are unable to pay as a result of the floods;agree a practical approach when individuals and businesses have lost vital records to the floods;suspend debt collection proceedings for those affected by the floods; andcancel penalties when the customer has missed statutory deadlines due to the floods. The helpline is in addition to other HMRC telephone contact numbers.

Revenue and Customs: Dundee

Chris Law: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the Government plans to relocate all 650 HM Revenue & Customs jobs at Sidlaw House, Dundee, to the Department for Work and Pensions.

Mr David Gauke: I refer the Honourable Member to the answer I gave on December 7th. http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2015-12-01/18395/

Employment: Dundee

Chris Law: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the potential effect on jobs in Dundee of the policies outlined in the Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015.

Greg Hands: The government has made no assessment of the effect on jobs in Dundee as result of the Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015. A number of economic policies which affect jobs are devolved to the Scottish Government.The government has set out its commitment to have the highest employment rate in the G7 and the Autumn Statement set out further measures to support people into work, including extending Jobcentre Plus support to 1.3 million additional claimants on Universal Credit by 2020, and a real terms increase in funding to support people with disabilities and health conditions find, and remain in, work.

Infrastructure: Investment

Seema Malhotra: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the evidential basis is for his contribution of 25 November 2015, Official Report, column 1366, that Britain topped the league table of the best places in the world to invest in infrastructure.

Greg Hands: As anounced in the Autumn Statement the UK is recognised as the number one country for attracting infrastructure investment by Nabarro LLP’s 2015 infrastructure index. Nabarro ranks the UK as the top infrastructure investment destination based on its “chart-topping” sustainability and innovation, one of the highest scores for private participation, and strong credit and stability. The report also highlighted the government’s devolution policy as helping to facilitate a favourable investment environment.

Air Passenger Duty: Scotland

Mike Kane: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of a 50 per cent reduction in air passenger duty in Scotland on Manchester Airport.

Damian Hinds: The government is currently undertaking a consultation into options to support regional airports from the impacts of air passenger duty devolution. We are carefully considering the evidence we have received from stakeholders and will respond in due course.

Department for Energy and Climate Change

Renewable Energy: Foreign Companies

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, which energy companies have received public funding for renewable contracts and have contracted supply chain work to overseas companies.

Andrea Leadsom: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 09 December 2015.The correct answer should have been:

Energy companies accredited under the Renewables Obligation are recorded in Ofgem’s Renewables and CHP register:https://www.renewablesandchp.ofgem.gov.uk/.Whilst the award of supply chain contracts is a matter of commercial negotiation for the companies in question, UK content in the supply chain is important to this Government, and my Department takes steps to maximise it. For example, DECC, together with UKTI and BIS, works closely with each offshore wind farm developer to ensure that UK companies are able to bid for contracts in an open and fair competition process.Offshore Wind Developers have committed to achieving their vision statement of providing over 50% UK content in UK offshore wind farms. There is an agreed industry standard methodology in place for the Industry to measure and record the UK content in each offshore wind farm. The industry publishes the anonymised and consolidated results to allow the sector and the public to track the sector’s progress towards fulfilling their vision.

Andrea Leadsom: Energy companies accredited under the Renewables Obligation are recorded in Ofgem’s Renewables and CHP register:https://www.renewablesandchp.ofgem.gov.uk/.Whilst the award of supply chain contracts is a matter of commercial negotiation for the companies in question, UK content in the supply chain is important to this Government, and my Department takes steps to maximise it. For example, DECC, together with UKTI and BIS, works closely with each offshore wind farm developer to ensure that UK companies are able to bid for contracts in an open and fair competition process.Offshore Wind Developers have committed to achieving their vision statement of providing over 50% UK content in UK offshore wind farms. There is an agreed industry standard methodology in place for the Industry to measure and record the UK content in each offshore wind farm. The industry publishes the anonymised and consolidated results to allow the sector and the public to track the sector’s progress towards fulfilling their vision.

Carbon Sequestration: EU Grants and Loans

Angus Brendan MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how much EU funding was allocated to the operation of carbon capture and storage projects which is not now available for spending on UK projects.

Andrea Leadsom: Holding answer received on 08 December 2015



In 2009 the Don Valley Project was awarded a €180m European Energy Programme for Recovery grant which contributes towards the feasibility and design phase of the project's development. The award is still in place and ~€125m has so far been claimed. In 2013 the White Rose CCS project was awarded up to €300m in potential NER300 funding. This award, which remains available, is subject to the project being able to successfully store carbon dioxide before the end of June 2020.

Carbon Sequestration

Angus Brendan MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment she made of the value for money of carbon capture and storage before the Government's carbon capture and storage competition was suspended; and how much from the public purse had been spent on that competition at the time of suspension.

Andrea Leadsom: Holding answer received on 08 December 2015



The provision of ring-fenced capital support for CCS was judged against other Government funding priorities as part of the Spending Review. My department has paid £78.6m between 2011/12 and November 2015 on the CCS Competition including the investment in Front End Engineering and Design (approximately £60 million), independent professional technical, legal, financial and commercial advice and civil service staff.The Government continues to view CCS as having a potential role in the long-term decarbonisation of the UK’s power and industrial sectors, and considers that the investment to date remains value for money to the UK.

Energy: Planning

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, whether she plans to review the assessment principles on imperative reasons of overriding public interest in big energy planning projects.

Andrea Leadsom: These are requirements under European Law. There are no plans to review the assessment principles on imperative reasons of overriding public interest in big energy planning projects.

Carbon Sequestration

Callum McCaig: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what recent estimate the Government has made of the potential annual value of the carbon capture and storage industry to the UK economy by 2020.

Andrea Leadsom: A report1 published by the Department of Business, Innovation & Skills estimated that the Carbon Capture and Storage sector and supply chain contributed £200m of Gross Value Added to the UK economy in 2013. The Government has not made a recent estimate of the potential annual value of the CCS industry to the UK economy by 2020.1 The size and performance of the UK low carbon economy, BIS, March 2015.https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/416240/bis-15-206-size-and-performance-of-uk-low-carbon-economy.pdf

Energy: Meters

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, with reference to paragraph 2.31 of her Department's policy conclusions: Early Learning Project and Small-scale Behaviour Trials, relating to the Smart Metering Implementation Programme, published in March 2015, what wider evidence was used to reach the conclusion that durable energy savings of three per cent could realistically be expected; and what assessment she has made of whether the programme remains on course to achieve such savings.

Andrea Leadsom: The wider evidence used to reach the conclusions relating to energy savings is set out under ‘Research and theory on energy saving linked to smart metering’ in chapter 6 of the Smart Metering Early Learning Project: Synthesis report:https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/407568/8_Synthesis_FINAL_25feb15.pdfOur assessment remains that it is realistic to expect durable energy savings of 3 per cent provided engagement is effective, and that larger savings are feasible in the future. The Department is continuing to work with energy suppliers, Smart Energy GB and others to ensure that the energy savings and wider benefits to consumers are maximised.

Renewable Energy: Dundee

Chris Law: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what steps the Government is taking to help create renewable energy industry jobs in Dundee.

Andrea Leadsom: Government support has helped to create a thriving renewables sector and drive strong progress on UK supply chain development. According to DECC analysis based on BIS 2015: Size and Performance of the Low Carbon Economy the sector currently supports around 16,000 jobs in Scotland.

Private Rented Housing: Energy

Dr   Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that landlords in the private rented sector comply with the requirement for properties to be a minimum of energy efficiency rating E by April 2017.

Andrea Leadsom: The Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property)(England and wales) Regulations 2015 require that, subject to certain exemptions, domestic and non-domestic private rented sector landlords improve their properties to a minimum energy efficiency rating of E from April 2018.The Department is currently developing guidance documents to assist landlords in complying with their obligations under the regulations, and to support enforcement authorities in fulfilling their duties.

Carbon Sequestration

Angus Brendan MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment the Government has made of the potential contribution of carbon capture and storage to the UK meeting its 2020 carbon reduction targets.

Andrea Leadsom: The Department for Energy and Climate Change has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Carbon Sequestration: North Sea Oil

Angus Brendan MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment she has made of the effect of cancelling the carbon capture and storage on oil recovery from the North Sea oil field over the next 20 years.

Andrea Leadsom: The Department for Energy and Climate Change has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Fracking: Countryside

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what her policy is on the extraction of shale gas  in national parks and areas of outstanding natural beauty.

Andrea Leadsom: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Bristol West on 16 November 2015 to Question No 15971:http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2015-11-10/15971/.

Solar Power: Finance

Meg Hillier: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what support her Department provides for community solar projects.

Andrea Leadsom: The Department for Energy and Climate Change has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Nuclear Power Stations: Construction

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what criteria will need to be satisfied for sites to qualify for inclusion in a list of potential new build nuclear sites for the development of a small modular reactor.

Andrea Leadsom: The Department for Energy and Climate Change has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Trawsfynydd Power Station

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, whether Trawsfynydd former nuclear power station site in North Wales qualifies for inclusion in a list of possible small nuclear reactor sites in the UK.

Andrea Leadsom: The Department for Energy and Climate Change has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Nuclear Power Stations: Construction

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if she will add further sites for the development of small modular reactor technology in the UK in addition to those identified in the 2009 strategic site assessment.

Andrea Leadsom: The Department for Energy and Climate Change has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Cabinet Office

Employment: Dundee

Chris Law: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many people have been employed in Dundee by the Government and its agencies in each year since 1990.

Mr Rob Wilson: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.



Excel Attachment for Member - Employment in Dundee
(Excel SpreadSheet, 29.33 KB)




UKSA Letter to Member - Employment in Dundee
(PDF Document, 62.83 KB)

Government Departments: Ministerial Policy Advisers

Chris Bryant: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the cost is of special advisers in each Department.

Chris Bryant: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the pay bands are for special advisers; and how many there are in each band, in each Department.

Chris Bryant: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many special advisers there are in each Department.

Matthew Hancock: Information about the number, pay bands, and cost of special advisers will be published shortly in the normal way.

Drugs: Misuse

Mr David Hanson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many people of what age and sex have died as a result of volatile substance abuse in each region of England and Wales in each year since 2013.

Mr David Hanson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many people of what age and sex have died as a result of the abuse of nitrous oxide in each region of England and Wales in each year since 2013.

Mr Rob Wilson: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.



UKSA Letter to Member - Nitrous Oxide Deaths
(PDF Document, 171.23 KB)

Elections: Fraud

Mr Mark Hendrick: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what plans his Department has to respond to the Electoral Commission's report, Electoral Fraud in the UK, published in January 2014.

John Penrose: The Government is currently conducting its own review of electoral fraud, led by Sir Eric Pickles MP, which is considering arguments for and against different measures to improve electoral integrity, including those suggested by the Electoral Commission. Recommendations emerging from the review will be put to the Prime Minister in due course.

Civil Servants: Political Activities

Chris Bryant: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether there is, or has been within the last 10 years, a requirement on (a) applicants to the civil service and (b) civil servants upon entry to the civil service to disclose party political membership.

Matthew Hancock: The restrictions on civil servants’ involvement in political activities are set out in the Civil Service Management Code. This is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/418696/CSMC-_April_2015.pdf

Ministerial Policy Advisers

Rebecca Long Bailey: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the total cost to the public purse was of ministerial special advisors in the last financial year; and how much is projected to be so spent in the next financial year.

Matthew Hancock: Information about the number, pay bands, and cost of special advisers will be published shortly in the normal way.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Dogs: Smuggling

Ms Margaret Ritchie: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make an assessment of the implications for her policies of the recommendations of the report by the Dogs Trust entitled Puppy Smuggling: The Scandal Continues, published in July 2015.

George Eustice: The Dogs Trust’s report highlights that responsibility for stopping the illegal movement of puppies begins in the country where they are born. The UK Chief Veterinary Officer has written to the authorities in the countries highlighted in the report to remind them of their duty to ensure that the requirements of the EU pet travel scheme must be fully complied with. This approach has previously resulted in investigations in EU Member States and appropriate action being taken, including the suspension of veterinarians’ licenses. We will continue to alert the authorities in any Member State where we become aware of issues in relation to the operation of the pet travel scheme.The UK carries out more checks on pets at the border than most other EU Member States. In order to carry pets, transport companies must be approved by the Animal and Plant Health Agency to ensure that they have the necessary facilities and trained staff. It is a condition of approval that the transport company check 100% of those pets declared to them for compliance with the EU pet travel scheme. Stringent penalties are in place where people are found to be breaking the rules. Defra actively shares intelligence it gathers relating to abuse of the pet travel scheme with Local Authorities (who are enforcement bodies) and other EU countries for them to further investigate and take any necessary action.The illegal trade is ultimately driven by demand and so we have published guidance on the steps pet owners can take to avoid buying an illegally imported pet. See: https://www.gov.uk/buying-a-cat-or-dog. Defra has also worked closely with the Pet Advertising Advisory Group to drive up standards for online advertisements.

Food

Craig Whittaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to encourage people to consume locally-sourced food produce.

George Eustice: The Government recognises the value that high-quality, locally produced food has to consumers, communities and the economy. The Great British Food Campaign was launched on 3 November to celebrate the achievements of British food and drink and to ensure that the conditions are right for its quality, creativity and reputation to flourish.2016 will be the Year of British Food. It will celebrate the quality and provenance of Britain’s producers, manufacturers, retailers and restaurateurs allowing everyone to benefit from and share the UK’s culinary heritage.

Food Supply

Dr Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what food security planning her Department has undertaken for the UK in times of conflict, crisis and war situations.

George Eustice: Food supply in the UK is a critical national infrastructure (CNI) sector and a sector resilience plan is completed annually by Defra as lead Government Department. The plan sets out the background to resilience of the sector, an assessment of risk, and a plan for mitigation action. A summary of the plan is published by the Cabinet Office athttps://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/370156/20141103_Summary_sector_resilience_plan_2014.pdf.Food supply is considered to be resilient because of the size, diversity, and strong contingency planning in the food industry sectors, as demonstrated by the response to potentially disruptive challenges in recent years. There is a clear recognition of the dependency on other critical sectors such as energy, transport, and communications, and Defra works closely with the industry sectors and with other lead Government Departments to mitigate risk.

Animals: Sales

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the animal licensing review will include a review of how to tackle internet sales of rare animals.

George Eustice: The proposed review of local authority licensing of animal activities will encompass the Pet Animals Act 1951 which regulates the selling of pet animals, including the sale of animals on-line.

Department of Health

Transplant Surgery

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what progress he has made in implementing the recommendations of NHS Blood and Transplant's report, Taking Organ Transplantation to 2020: A UK Strategy, published in 2013.

Jane Ellison: Changing behaviour and attitudes towards organ donation is a key feature of the transplantation strategy Taking Organ Transplantation to 2020. This strategy was developed by NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) with the support of the four UK Health Departments and sets the agenda for increasing organ donation and transplantation rates to match world class standards over the next few years.UK Government provides NHSBT with around £60 million a year to support various initiatives and specific projects to help raise organ donation and transplant rates. We continue to take action to build on the increase in donation and transplant rates since 2008, and the current number of people on the Organ Donor Register has increased to 22 million people.NHSBT works collaboratively with a number of partners to promote organ donation, such as Boots Advantage Card, football clubs and voluntary organisations and the media. Specific initiatives include working with faith groups and communities to encourage organ donation. People can also add their name to the NHS Organ Donation Register via Government owned channels such as applying for a driving licence and paying car tax online.

Eyesight: Surgery

Oliver Colvile: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what his timetable is for implementing the recommendations of the Keogh Review with regard to the safety and quality of laser eye surgery.

Oliver Colvile: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department has taken to assure the public of the safety and quality of laser eye surgery.

Alistair Burt: Providers of laser eye surgery are required to register with the Care Quality Commission (CQC), as this is a regulated activity. All providers of regulated activities under the Health and Social Care Act 2008 must be registered with the Care Quality Commission and meet the new fundamental standards of safety and quality that came into force on 1 April this year. The CQC has a range of enforcement actions that it can take if providers do not meet the fundamental standards.Doctors performing laser eye surgery in the United Kingdom must also be registered with the General Medical Council (GMC). All registered doctors are expected to be familiar with the GMC’s publication Good medical practice and supporting guidance, which describes what is expected of them. This document makes clear that medical doctors must recognise and work within the limits of their competence.It has now been agreed that work to improve the delivery, safety and standards for patient information for laser eye surgery will be taken forward separately from the work to implement the Keogh Review, and that, as the professional body for setting the standards of practice for refractive procedures, the Royal College of Ophthalmologists will lead on this work.

Tobacco

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if the Government will publish an updated Tobacco Control Plan for England.

Jane Ellison: This Government is committed to reducing the prevalence of smoking in England to further improve and protect the health of the nation. In line with this commitment Government plan to publish a new tobacco control strategy for England next year.

Mental Health Services: Veterans

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how the £1.8 million expenditure on mental health services for armed forces veterans by his Department in 2014-15 was spent.

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what expenditure his Department plans to make on mental health services for armed forces veterans in (a) 2015-16, (b) 2016-17, (c) 2017-18, (d) 2018-19 and (e) 2019-20.

Alistair Burt: NHS England has £1.8 million per annum baseline (recurrent to 2019/20) funding for veterans mental health services. This funding is used to provide 10 veterans mental health teams across England to meet locally identified needs of veterans and manage the network of providers of NHS commissioned veterans mental health services.The funding also provides access for veterans to on-line mental health counselling services provided by the Big White Wall.In addition, NHS England provides £3.2 million a year to commission the Armed Forces service charity Combat Stress to provide specialised inpatient services for the treatment of complex post- traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).In 2014/15 further funding of £1.68 million was used to fund three pilots to develop and test enhanced models of care for veterans.The pilots will:- develop a joint substance misuse and mental health service model for veterans;- develop an outpatient service for veterans with moderate to severe PTSD; and- develop a modal of care to address the barriers that some veterans experience in accessing mental health services.Veterans are also able to access the full range of NHS mental health services in the same way as the wider public.

Hearing Impairment

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people of each gender had single-sided deafness in each of the last five years.

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he expects transfer devices that enable people with single-sided deafness to hear sounds from their deaf ear in their other ear to be available through the NHS.

Alistair Burt: The information requested on the number of people with single-sided deafness is not available in the format requested. However, the following table shows the number of patients admitted to hospital with a diagnosis of single-sided deafness in the last five years in England.Year2010 - 20112011 - 20122012 – 20132013 - 20142014 - 2015Male277286295336301Female299279310336332This data may include the same person being admitted to hospital on more than one occasion and the data excludes diagnoses that were made outside of secondary care.The Action Plan on Hearing Loss was jointly published in March 2015 by the Department and NHS England. It sets out the case for taking action on the rising prevalence and personal, social and economic costs of uncorrected hearing loss and the variation in access and quality of services experienced by people with hearing loss.Transfer devices are available through the NHS. NHS England is developing commissioning guidance on the provision of hearing loss services, as part of its commitments in the Action Plan on Hearing Loss. The guidance will support clinical commissioning groups when making local decisions and help improve equality of access and patient experience.

NHS: Training

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate his Department has made of the total number of recipients of NHS bursaries in each of the last five years; how much has been so allocated; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Gummer: Information on the number of students who were in receipt of a bursary and the total cost of all bursaries made in each of the last five complete financial years is shown in the following table.Financial Year 12010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 Number of NHS Bursary recipients2107,966100,906102,186102,791100,097Total expenditure (£000)3521,456509,422482,219452,134430,349Source: NHS Business Services AuthorityNotes:1Covers the period 1 April to 31 March2The figures relate to the number of students paid any bursary element in the period. As such figures exclude nil award holders (European Union) fees only students and students whose award was fully abated by means-testing. 3Covers all bursary award elements.

Nurses

Heidi Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many nurses were employed in each NHS region in the latest month for which figures are available.

Ben Gummer: The following table shows the number of full time equivalent nursing, midwifery and health visiting staff employed in each Health Education England region as at August 2015. The data is from the Health and Social Care Information Centre’s Hospital and Community Health Services monthly workforce statistics and does not include nurses working in general practice.



Nurses by HEE region
(Excel SpreadSheet, 17.11 KB)

Nurses

Heidi Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many nurses were employed in each Agenda for Change band in the latest month for which figures are available.

Ben Gummer: The latest information about the number of nurses employed in each Agenda for Change band is in the attached table.



Number of nurses agenda for change
(Word Document, 17.14 KB)

Parkinson's Disease

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is take to ensure that the £22 billion NHS efficiency savings proposed in the NHS Five-Year Forward View, published in October 2014, do not affect the quality of services which people with Parkinson's Disease require to assist them with their condition.

Alistair Burt: Efficiency and high quality care go hand-in-hand; cutting waste and safer care are integral to ensuring better outcomes at a lower cost. The efficiencies the National Health Service needs to find are linked to the challenge of continued improvements in care across all services, including for people with Parkinson’s disease. We are introducing a number of measures to help the NHS spend taxpayers’ money more efficiently by making sure that the health and care system is supported to invest in areas where they can make the most positive impact on the health of their local population.

Nurses: Training

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate his Department has made of the total number of student nurses in England and Wales in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Gummer: The following table shows the total number of student nurses in England, in training places as at 31 March in each year, for the period 2010/11 to 2014/15. The Department and Health Education England do not hold data for students undertaking their training in Wales.Year2010/112011/122012/132013/142014/15Nurses53,10151,82452,91448,48450,139Source: multi professional education and training budget monitoring returnsIn 2015 the National Health Service has seen record numbers of nurses and midwives in post. The latest data from the Health and Social Care Information Centre’s Hospital and Community Health Services monthly workforce statistics, which does not include nurses working in general practice, shows a total of 303,600 full time equivalent nurses and midwives, in post in England in August 2015.

Homeopathy

David Tredinnick: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when the Government plans to undertake its public consultation on whether or not homeopathic products should be available through NHS prescriptions; and what estimate he has made of the likely cost of that consultation to the public purse.

Alistair Burt: We are currently considering whether or not homeopathic products should continue to be available through National Health Service prescriptions. A consultation on proposals will commence early in the new year. The consultation will be undertaken by the Department utilising on-line tools such as the governmental digital platform gov.uk. We do not anticipate any additional external costs.

Social Security Benefits: Suicide

Neil Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people who died by suicide were social security claimants in (a) the UK and (b) Scotland in each of the last three years.

Alistair Burt: The data requested is not collected centrally.

Mental Health Services

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what reports NHS England has produced on progress in achieving parity of esteem for mental health.

Alistair Burt: NHS England and the Department jointly published Achieving Better Access to Mental Health Services by 2020 in October 2014. This publication recognised that a key element of achieving parity across mental and physical health care depends on enabling people to have timely access to evidence-based and effective care, and set out a clear vision for the development of access and waiting time standards in mental health including introduction of the first set of standards on early intervention in psychosis and psychological therapies, as well as signalling new investment in liaison mental health services in acute hospitals.NHS England’s Five Year Forward View set out a clear commitment to a more equal response across mental and physical health and achieving genuine parity of esteem by 2020.In support of this objective, NHS England’s latest planning guidance, Forward View into Action: planning for 2015-16, includes an expectation that clinical commissioning groups’ (CCG) spending on mental health services in 2015-16 should increase in real terms, and grow by at least as much as each CCG’s allocation increase to support the ambition of parity between mental and physical health.NHS England has commissioned an independent Mental Health Task Force to produce a five-year mental health strategy, for improved access and outcomes in all settings, to be published in the New Year.

Female Genital Mutilation

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to raise awareness of female genital mutilation among mental health professionals.

Jane Ellison: As part of its £3 million national Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) Prevention Programme, the Department is developing staff training and awareness materials on FGM focusing on the mental health and wellbeing of FGM survivors.To increase health professionals’ awareness of this complex area, the Department has commissioned Health Education England to develop specialist FGM mental health e-learning, which will be provided free to all NHS professionals. Existing mental health training materials are also being updated by Health Education England to support awareness and recognition by health professionals of the impact of FGM on mental health.A ministerial roundtable with senior stakeholders was held on 29 October 2015 to discuss this issue. The Department is working with specialist mental health professionals and professional bodies to consider how best to support commissioners to ensure that mental health services are able to meet the needs of FGM survivors.

Offences against Children

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what information his Department holds on the proportion of people identified as having experienced child abuse who are diagnosed with a mental health condition as a young person or adult.

Alistair Burt: This information is not held centrally.The Department with its partners are taking forward a series of actions set out in ‘Tackling Child Sexual Exploitation’ March 2015 to create a culture where the health service and medical professionals are spotting the signs of child sexual abuse and exploitation early and are supported in sharing information with others, which includes improving available data on the prevalence of child abuse using the population-wide children and adolescent mental health survey.

Department of Health: Christmas

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much his Department and each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies plans to spend on (a) Christmas cards, (b) postage of Christmas cards, (c) Christmas parties and (d) Christmas decorations and trees in 2015.

Jane Ellison: A search of the Department’s Business Management System database for 2015 has identified there is no planned spend to fund Christmas cards, postage of Christmas cards and parties. As separately identified from our facilities management suppliers, EMCOR, the Department has no plans currently to purchase Christmas decorations or trees from them.The Civil Service Code sets out the principles and standards of behaviour expected of civil servants, including their fiduciary obligation to make sure public money and other resources are used properly and efficiently. Public money is not used by the Department, Public Health England or the Medicine and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency to fund occasions such as internal social gatherings or office parties. Any social events are funded by the staff themselves.Arm’s length bodies have systems in place to ensure public funds are used appropriately and standards of propriety are met, in line with their responsibilities as public bodiesSpend as requested from all the Departments non-departmental public bodies and its agencies are separately reported below:NHS England have confirmed they hold no planned expenditure for all these categories.Monitor have confirmed they hold no planned expenditure for all these categories.The Care Quality Commission have confirmed they hold no planned expenditure for all these categories.Public Health England have confirmed they hold no planned expenditure for all these categories.Health Education England have confirmed they hold no planned expenditure for all these categories.The Health and Social Care Information Centre have confirmed they hold no planned expenditure for all these categories.National Institute for Health and Care Excellence 2015 expenditure is contained in the table below.£Christmas cards0Postage0Parties£1615.32Decorations and trees0Total£1615.32Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency 2015 expenditure is contained in the table below.£Christmas cards£0.00Postage£0.00Parties£0.00Decorations and trees£630+£126 VATTotal£756The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority have confirmed they hold no planned expenditure for all these categories.The Human Tissue Authority have confirmed they hold no planned expenditure for all these categories.The Health Research Authority have confirmed they hold no planned expenditure for all these categories.

Prisoners: Mental Illness

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 7 December 2015 to Question 18596, if he will make it his policy to collect data on the proportion of the prison population who have mental health problems and identify as LGBT.

Ben Gummer: Health and wellbeing needs assessments provide information on the mental illness incidence in individual prisons. There is no current requirement for NHS England to record sexual orientation details in patient records, so no data on the proportion of prisoners with both mental health problems and who identify as LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) is known.The Health and Social Care’s Information Centre’s Standardisation Committee for Care Information is currently considering a proposal for a mandatory requirement to record a patient’s sexual orientation in all NHS services.